## 4 Internet Access for People with ID  
ICT can be viewed as a survival tool in society. Ever increasing numbers of people are going online to conduct many of their everyday activities, including education, business and banking, information searching, seeking of employment, civic engagement, maintaining friendships and seeking life partners [30, 31, 32]. Thus, being digitally connected is increasingly fundamental to economic and education advancement and community participation [30]. No longer is access to the Internet considered a luxury, instead it is an integral and important life survival tool which can make life more enjoyable and empower individuals [30]. Although many of us may take for granted the perks associated with Internet access, for certain groups of people the Internet has the potential to help them to better integrate into society and experience many of the benefits of full citizenship. For individuals with ID for example, the Internet promises to decrease or remove many of the barriers which may preclude them from participating in many daily activities [31,32]. However, although people with IDpotentially stand to gain the most from this technology, they are traditionally the group within society least likely to gain access to and receive the full benefits from the Internet. This clearly mirrors the inequalities people with ID face in other spheres within their lives. Although it is evident that a \"digital divide\" exists between societies and within society, it is difficult to know for sure exactly how many people with ID are actually accessing the Internet, and of those who do gain access, what they find particularly beneficial or useful. The majority of large scale studies on web accessibility have focused on disability generally. For example [PERSON] (2011) [33] noted a \"disability divide\" in Internet access in the United States, with 81% of the non-disabled population gaining access compared to only 54% of disabled individuals. A recent US report revealed a considerable disparity between households headed by someone with a disability and those headed by someone with no disability in computer ownership (53% _vs._ 79%), Internet use (48% _vs._ 76%) and broadband adoption (46% _vs._ 73%) [34]. An even greater disparity was revealed in a 2007 British survey, with 77% of the non-disabled population using the Internet compared to 36% of disabled individuals [35]. A more recent UK report suggested people without disabilities are three times more likely to have never accessed the internet compared to people without disabilities [36]. The report also indicated that 3.89 million people with disabilities (33%) had never accessed the Internet [36]. Finally, a recent smaller study of 122 disabled individuals in China, confirmed the digital divide that exists, with only a minority of people with disabilities having Internet access [37]. As these surveys have failed to discriminate between physical and intellectual disabilities, it is difficult to ascertain how specific types of impairment may influence use and access to the Internet [38,39]. Moreover, such studies sometimes fail to draw a distinction between opportunity of access and actual use of the Internet. In this sense, two distinct questions should be posed: are opportunities for access available to individuals with ID (_i.e._, do they have access to a computer that is enabled for use online), and if they are, do they actually take advantage of these opportunities, either autonomously or with support? [38]. Of the few studies that have addressed Internet accessibility specifically in the ID community, most have found that people with intellectual and developmental disabilities are much less likely to have access to and use the Internet than their non-disabled peers. In a small scale survey of 83 adults with intellectual disabilities in the United States for example, [PERSON] _et al._ (2005) [40] noted that a mere 41% had access to a computer and only 25% had access to the Internet.