Digital technology holds transformative potential but is only fully harnessed when available for all. However, persistent barriers to digital equity are widening the global divide.
Lifeline gives low-income consumers free phones and discounted monthly data and minutes. This enables them to access jobs, stay in touch with family, and improve healthcare outcomes.
Access to Technology
The digital divide is a gap between people with access to technology and those without access. This gap is caused by limited connectivity, high cost of equipment, and a need for digital skills. Closing this gap will enable everyone to thrive in the modern world and reduce social inequality.
Internet access is essential for participation in today’s society. Many jobs require a baseline level of digital proficiency, schools rely on home internet to complete assignments, and vast economic opportunities exist online.
Despite significant progress in expanding broadband, millions of Americans still need more affordable and reliable internet access. Low internet access limits the ability of people to participate in work, education, civic engagement, and other aspects of daily life.
What is a Lifeline benefit? Lifeline has helped address this issue by giving low-income households a subsidy to purchase discounted connectivity plans from participating service providers. However, low program awareness and the burdensome verification process have been barriers to participation. The national verifier was rolled out to facilitate enrollment, but the system often fails to match data from internet service providers and government databases, meaning potential subscribers are rejected even when they may be eligible. These hurdles have acted as a deterrent to signup and led to a decline in Lifeline participation.
Digital Literacy
Digital literacy refers to navigating online environments, finding information, communicating with others, and creating content. This includes technical skills (such as knowing how to use a smartphone or access reliable data) and non-technical ones (recognizing red flags indicating whether an online source is reputable).
It’s important to remember that digital literacy is more than just using new technology. It’s also about understanding why these technologies are used in a specific context. For example, learning to use an online productivity tool can help someone stay on top of their assignments and meet deadlines more efficiently. In contrast, understanding how to use social media safely can help someone remain safe from scammers and other cyberbullies.
The key to digital literacy is developing a lifelong mindset that will allow people to continue adapting to new tech and continuing to learn critical thinking skills. This will prepare them for future jobs and equip them with the knowledge to make informed choices when navigating digital spaces.
Increasing digital literacy requires that everyone has access to affordable technology and the opportunity to learn how to use it. This includes investing in educational programs for individuals of all ages and establishing initiatives to help people overcome barriers to digital inclusion. For example, ensuring that rural and remote users can take advantage of internet connectivity solutions like community networks and satellite services is vital.
Gender Inequality
Gender inequality is a barrier to access and use of digital technology. A lack of equal access to digital technologies hampers girls’ and women’s abilities to participate in digital societies, pursue their aspirations, and achieve economic empowerment. In addition, the gender digital divide is often exacerbated by poverty and geography.
Poverty keeps women offline by limiting their access to affordable devices and data. In addition, cultural and social norms expect women to prioritize family and household responsibilities over their aspirations. This prevents them from taking advantage of digital technology opportunities, such as pursuing careers in STEM fields and using their devices to access online education or start new businesses.
As a result, the gender digital gap continues to expand in many developing countries, creating a specific need to support digital gender equality. Addressing this requires a holistic approach to ensure that the needs and aspirations of all women, men, boys, and girls are included in policy and technology design. This can be accomplished by applying a gender perspective to technology and investing in initiatives enabling women to use and participate in the digital economy.
Older Adults
Several factors contribute to older adults’ digital inclusion and exclusion. These include the availability of social support, changing personal interests in later life, and physical difficulty operating digital devices. The grey digital divide can be overcome by offering affordable internet and phone services with flexible data allotments, providing education about the benefits of internet use in older age, and designing ergonomic ICT products that can accommodate the needs of an aging population.
In recent years, the FCC has undertaken a careful balancing act to make the Lifeline program more efficient and effective while safeguarding it from waste, fraud, and abuse. A vital part of this effort was instituting minimum service standards that set a benchmark for voice and broadband connectivity. However, establishing these standards is a challenge, as too generous standards may wind up discouraging companies from participating in the Lifeline marketplace.
To ensure the integrity of the Lifeline program, the agency must verify that applicants are eligible for the subsidy.