Abstract
The rapid advances in computer technology, the plummeting prices of information processing and indexing devices, and the development of sprawling global networks have all made the generation, collection, processing, indexing, and storage of and access to information easy and have made the information infrastructure an enjoyable environment. The information. infrastructure consists of computer or computer-related hardware, software to run on the hardware, and humanware to run both. The human component in the information infrastructure is essential because humans create the life and dynamism in the infrastructure that has made it what it is. However, humans also create all the problems facing the infrastructure as we will see throughout the book. Note that the infrastructure we have just defined is actually cyberspace. So throughout the book, we will use cyberspace and information infrastructure interchangeably. Cyberspace technology has brought more excitement to humanity than ever before. Communication has become almost instantaneous. The speed of data access is chasing the speed of light. Humanity could not have gotten a better technology. However, with the excitement and “bewilderness,” there has come a realization, after rough experiences, that the new technology has a serious downside. Based on individual experiences, the fear of the new technology on which we have come to depend is on the rise. But because there are more benefits of the new technology to humanity, trust of the technology must be cultivated among the users of the technology. Webster’s Dictionary (1989) defines trust, as a noun as confidence or faith in a person or a thing and as a verb as having confidence or faith in someone or something. For us, we want users of the information infrastructure to have confidence in it.