IGCSE ICT: Communication — Revision Notes

Topic 10 of Cambridge IGCSE ICT 0417 covers communicating with other ICT users by email and using the internet effectively. You need to know email features and constraints (netiquette, cc, bcc, attachments, spam), how the internet differs from an intranet, an extranet and the World Wide Web, the parts of a URL, how to judge information found online, and the protocols HTTP, HTTPS, FTP and SSL.

Condensed for revision. For the full explanation, use the communication study guide, then try the communication practice questions.

Syllabus coverage

Syllabus ref	Content
10.1 Email	Characteristics, uses and constraints: acceptable language, employer guidelines, security, netiquette, email groups, cc, bcc, forward, attachments; spam and how to prevent it
10.2 Effective use of the internet	Internet, intranet, extranet and WWW; blog, forum, wiki, social networking; ISP, web address structure, URL, hyperlink, web browser; search engines; evaluating information; HTTP, HTTPS, FTP, SSL; risks and parental, educational and ISP control

10.1 How should email be used?

Constraints on email

• Acceptable language: no offensive, abusive or obscene language; many countries have laws about this.
• Employer guidelines: companies set rules on what staff may send, may monitor email and can discipline misuse.
• Security: use strong passwords, do not open unknown attachments, and do not send sensitive data unencrypted.
• Netiquette (network etiquette): be polite; do not type in CAPITALS (seen as shouting); keep messages short and clear; check spelling; use a meaningful subject line; do not send spam or chain messages; respect others’ privacy.

Email features

Feature	What it does	When to use it
Email group	One name stands for a list of addresses	Sending the same message to a team or club
To	Main recipient(s) who are expected to act	Person the message is addressed to
cc (carbon copy)	Sends a copy; all recipients can see who was copied	Keeping a manager informed
bcc (blind carbon copy)	Sends a copy; other recipients cannot see this address	Mailing many customers without sharing their addresses
Forward	Sends a received email on to someone else	Passing information to a colleague (check it is appropriate to share)
Attachment	A file sent with the email	Sending a document or image; be aware of file size limits and viruses

Spam

Spam is unsolicited email sent to many people at once, often advertising or scams. Effects: fills inboxes, wastes time, may carry phishing links or malware, uses network bandwidth. Prevention: use a spam filter; do not reply to or unsubscribe from suspicious spam (it confirms the address is active); do not publish your email address publicly; block senders; untick boxes that allow your address to be shared.

10.2 What is the difference between the internet, an intranet, an extranet and the WWW?

Term	Meaning
Internet	A worldwide network of interconnected networks; public
World Wide Web (WWW)	The collection of web pages and resources accessed using the internet; it is a service that runs on the internet, not the network itself
Intranet	A private network inside an organisation, using internet technology; accessed only by its members; information is more relevant and reliable
Extranet	Part of an intranet that selected outside users (for example suppliers or customers) can access with a login

Web 2.0 services

Service	Key features
Blog	Online journal by one author; entries in reverse date order; readers may comment but cannot edit
Forum	Online discussion board; members post and reply; may be moderated or unmoderated
Wiki	Website any authorised user can edit; quick to update but may contain errors or vandalism
Social networking	Users create profiles, connect with friends, share messages, photos and videos

Functionality

• ISP (Internet Service Provider): company that provides users with access to the internet, often with email, storage and filtering.
• Web browser: software that finds, retrieves and displays web pages and lets the user follow hyperlinks.
• Hyperlink: text or an image that, when clicked, opens another web page, another part of the page, a file or an email.
• URL (Uniform Resource Locator): the full address of a web resource.

Worked example: structure of a web address

https://www.marlbridge-school.co.uk/science/timetable.html

Part	Example	Meaning
Protocol	https://	How the data is transferred
Domain host	www	The web server
Domain name	marlbridge-school	The organisation’s name
Domain type	.co	Type of organisation (commercial)
Country code	.uk	Country
Path	/science/	Folder on the server
File name	timetable.html	The page requested

Using search engines

Advantages: very fast; huge amount of information; can find relevant information quickly when good keywords are used. Disadvantages: may return millions of results; finding reliable information is harder; results may be ranked by advertising or popularity, not accuracy.

How do you evaluate information found online?

Check that it is up to date (date of publication or last update), reliable (known author or organisation, for example .gov or .ac sites, other sources agree), not biased (not trying to sell or persuade; balanced viewpoint) and valid (accurate, relevant, references given).

Internet protocols

Protocol	Purpose
HTTP	Rules for transferring web pages between a web server and a browser
HTTPS	HTTP with encryption, so data such as passwords and payment details cannot be read if intercepted
FTP	Rules for transferring files between computers, for example uploading a website to a server
SSL	Security protocol that encrypts the link between the client and the server; shown by https and a padlock

Risks of using the internet

Inappropriate and criminal material can be found. Access can be restricted by parental control (filters and time limits set at home), educational control (school filters and blocked sites) and ISP control (filtering at the provider). Restriction raises a debate between protecting users and censorship.

Common mistakes and exam traps

• Saying the internet and the WWW are the same. The WWW is the pages; the internet is the network.
• Mixing up cc and bcc. In bcc, other recipients cannot see the address.
• Saying a wiki is written by one person. That is a blog; a wiki is edited by many users.
• Describing HTTPS as “a secure website”. It is a protocol that encrypts data in transfer.
• Saying spam is a virus. Spam is unwanted bulk email; it may carry viruses or phishing links.

Frequently asked questions

When should you use bcc instead of cc? Use bcc when sending to many people who should not see each other’s addresses, such as a company’s customer list. This protects their privacy and reduces the risk of addresses being used for spam.

What is the difference between an intranet and an extranet? An intranet is private to the organisation’s own members. An extranet lets selected outside users, such as suppliers, log in to part of the intranet.

Why is information on a search engine not always reliable? Anyone can publish online, so pages may be out of date, biased or wrong. Results are ranked by algorithms and advertising, not by accuracy, so you must check the source.

What does FTP do? File Transfer Protocol sets the rules for transferring files between computers over a network, for example uploading web pages to a web server.

Self-test

1. Give two rules of netiquette.
2. State one difference between a blog and a wiki.
3. In https://www.shop.com/sale/shoes.html, identify the protocol and the file name.
4. Name two methods of restricting access to inappropriate material.
5. Give two ways of preventing spam.

Answers: 1 do not use capitals, be polite, use a clear subject, check spelling; 2 a blog has one author and readers only comment, a wiki can be edited by many users; 3 https, shoes.html; 4 any two of parental, educational, ISP control; 5 spam filter, do not reply, do not publish your address, block senders.

Official syllabus

Cambridge International, Cambridge IGCSE Information and Communication Technology (0417) syllabus for 2026, 2027 and 2028, Version 3, Topic 10 “Communication” (10.1–10.2).