Digital Citizen

A digital citizen is a person who uses internet technology to participate in society, politics and government; the political scientist Karen Mossberger defines digital citizens as those who use the internet regularly and effectively. Contemporary accounts of digital citizenship emphasize how people enact their social and civic role through digital technologies, framing the concept around empowerment and democratization while also addressing datafication, the growing collection and use of personal data, and what citizenship means in algorithmic societies marked by surveillance and artificial intelligence. The concept pushes back on treating people as mere users of technology, since digital technologies shape people's agency both as individuals and as citizens. In practice, digital citizenship is described as the responsible and respectful use of technology to engage online while protecting privacy and human rights, through skills of communication, collaboration and security awareness.