The digital divide is wasting away: 20 percent of Italians have never used the internet. Public administration is still offline.

The digital divide , the "wall" separating those with internet access from those without, has changed the world. A serious inequality reminiscent of the energy gap that isolated some areas of Southern Italy in the 50s and 60s.

DIGITAL DIVIDE

Today, access to the internet in the broadest sense (not just the World Wide Web, the brainchild of Sir Berners-Lee's brilliant intuitions) is considered a fundamental human right, as confirmed in 2012 by a resolution unanimously approved by the UN Human Rights Council.

READ ALSO: The province is as smart as the big city, 5G breaks down technological and social distances

WHAT IS THE DIGITAL DIVIDE?

The United Nations itself recently raised the alarm: 3,8 billion people worldwide are offline , roughly half the global population; the continent most affected, as is all too often the case, is Africa, plagued by an infrastructure gap that is very difficult to bridge.

In much of the industrialized West, however, sensitivity towards the issue is not only normative, but there is a growing jurisprudential tendency to affirm the configuration of an effective – and compensable – digital divide damage , suffered by those who are not put in a position to use the Web.

DIGITAL DIVIDE

The European Commission annually analyzes the situation within member countries through the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI). The DESI Report provides valuable information for understanding the different speeds of development, in terms of digital inclusion, across the Old Continent and, of course, also offers a reliable snapshot of the Italian situation.

DIGITAL DIVIDE IN ITALY

According to the latest report, Italy's internet users represent 69% of the population, compared to the EU average of 81% . This isn't a bad figure overall, but when looking at all parameters (including connectivity, human capital, and digital technology integration), Italy ranks twenty-fourth out of twenty-eight.

Italy is still stuck in the quicksand of Fantozzi-esque paper bureaucracies, and currently lacks a digital public administration capable of convincing citizens: only 37% of Italians rely on online forms to complete their administrative procedures.

Ultrafast broadband (100 Mbps and above) is also significantly behind , but one statistic is shocking: 19% of Italians, nearly double the EU average, have never used the internet. Never.

READ MORE: Internet of Things: How to Protect Your Privacy with a Super-Secure Connection

DIGITAL DIVIDE IN THE WORLD

Maybe because we're a country for old people? Probably, also because those who use it, especially the very young, do so following commonly observed trends .

In fact, from Aosta to Ragusa, those who surf the Internet love being on social media and downloading music, but they get very little information or documentation (we are sadly last among the EU countries for online news consumption ).

It's not too surprising, as in Italy, in 2017, only 41% of people aged 6 and over read at least one book for non-professional reasons.

"Read to live," Flaubert admonished. With a digital future still to be built and little desire to learn more about the world, we are instead consigning ourselves to long-term care. We deserve better.

HOW TO USE THE INTERNET THE RIGHT WAY:

• It's called the Internet of Things, a computer in every object in life. A way for everyone to be registered. And to pay more for our purchases.
• Technological diet: summer is the perfect time. Try it, you won't regret it.
• Let's go back to talking to someone, and not just someone through the Internet (Sherry Turkle)
• Buying and selling used products online: how to avoid unpleasant surprises and wasted money in 5 steps. Be careful when online.