Increasingly as a society we are moving online. New technologies have done a lot of great things for the third sector, people can access our services online and find out about the work we do more easily, but there are people who can be left behind in this digital shift. Development Officer, Olivia, writes about how digital inequality is a human rights issue.
‘Digital inequality’ refers to the knowledge and skills gap around how to use technology, along with issues relating to being able to access to technology, that are often affected by social demographics like age and socio-economic status.
There are an estimated 8.5 million people living in the UK that lack digital literacy, and as of 2024, 15% of Scotland’s adult population lacked foundation level digital skills.
There are many reasons for the numbers of people experiencing digital inequality. Technology and subscriptions to services such as broadband can be unaffordable for many, meaning that if all our services are online, then we are excluding those that cannot afford to be in those spaces.
While online services can be great for rural communities, allowing them to access our work without travelling, these communities can also have to deal with unpredictable online connections.
People who didn’t grow up using modern digital technology can find it harder to navigate and pick up. Digital literacy is a skill that has to be learned, and if there is no support to do so, it can be quite challenging to know where to start.
The digital divide is very much present for people with disabilities, as of 2019, 32% of people with learning disabilities lacked basic digital skills.
The impacts of this lack of digital access or literacy can be significant, people may miss out on essential services and information, it can increase social isolation, it can lead to inequalities of opportunity and education and create barriers to employment.
Digital inequality is a human rights issue. If someone can’t access the online resources that are essential for their high school or college course work for example, that impacts on their right to education. If you don’t have access to the internet, you might find it harder to access online portals for universal credit administration, impacting on your right to social security. The way that digital inequality most often affects those who are already marginalised, such as people experiencing poverty, impacts on their right to freedom from discrimination.
This impact on people’s human rights is why it is important that we start to talk about and frame digital inequality as a human rights issue.
Digital inequality cannot be solved by treating it as a tick box exercise, it is constantly changing as inequality deepens in society and technology develops further and becomes wrapped up in the processes that govern our everyday lives. Someone that is not experiencing digital inequality now, might in the future if their circumstances change or technology advances – an example of this is the rapid development of Artificial Intelligence. So, it is crucial that tackling it is seen as an ongoing and urgent process.
If you are thinking ‘what should I do next?’, here are a few prompts to start with:
This blog is being released alongside a webinar on digital inclusion by the Mhor Collective. Below are some resources they have outlined as useful in starting your journey in addressing digital inequality:
