Cyberlibertarian

What Does Cyberlibertarian Mean?

A cyberlibertarian is an individual who subscribes to a kind of ideology about new technologies, such as the Internet. He or she advocates for the use of technology as a means of promoting individual or decentralized initiatives and less dependence on central governments.

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The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is an organization that is an advocate for cyberlibertarians and cyberlibertarianism.

A cyberlibertarian is also known as a cyber-libertarian.

Techopedia Explains Cyberlibertarian

A cyberlibertarian believes technology and the Internet to be inherently liberating, regardless of actual outcome. Cyberlibertarianism is the subject of great criticism, but some argue that there is truth and merit to its central premise. For example, the Internet and digital media are inherently decentralizing forms of communication, where individuals have a much greater voice, versus traditional media.

There is also the issue of whether users can create libertarian or liberating projects with new technologies. Examples involve alternative currency like bitcoin, a variety of illegal file streaming applications and various types of underground communications that thwart modern security and surveillance efforts, not to mention the emergence of vast hacker collectives that challenge institutional gatekeepers and paid security experts.

A major point surrounding cyberlibertarian values relates to how technology will ultimately impact how people live and its effect of personal freedoms.

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Margaret Rouse

Margaret Rouse is an award-winning technical writer and teacher known for her ability to explain complex technical subjects to a non-technical, business audience. Over the past twenty years her explanations have appeared on TechTarget websites and she's been cited as an authority in articles by the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine and Discovery Magazine.Margaret's idea of a fun day is helping IT and business professionals learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages. If you have a suggestion for a new definition or how to improve a technical explanation, please email Margaret or contact her…