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ICT (information and communications technology) is the connected ecosystem of devices, software, networks, and services people and organizations use to create, process, store, transmit, exchange, and use information. It includes traditional IT—such as computers, software, and databases—but also puts communications systems such as mobile networks, broadband, broadcasting, and collaboration tools in view. ICT is an umbrella term, not one product, course, or industry.
What does ICT stand for?
The letters stand for Information and Communications Technology. You will also see Information and Communication Technology. Both forms generally describe the same broad field; the wording varies among organizations and regions. UNESCO describes ICT as tools and platforms that enable information exchange, including technologies such as broadcasting, telephony, computers, and the internet (UNESCO definition; UNESCO education terminology).
The communications element matters: information is not only stored or processed, but moved between people, devices, organizations, and services. A useful shorthand is ICT = information technology plus communications, though the boundary is not a universal rule.
What is included in ICT?
ICT is easier to understand by what its components do than by treating it as a long list of gadgets. It includes physical equipment, connectivity, computing, applications, information, and the people and rules that make systems work together.
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- Devices and hardware: computers, smartphones, servers, storage, routers, switches, wireless access points, printers, cameras, microphones, televisions, sensors, and embedded devices.
- Networks and connectivity: Wi-Fi, local and wide-area networks, cellular systems, fiber and broadband, satellite links, private networks, and the public internet.
- Software and services: operating systems, databases, email, messaging, business applications, video meetings, collaboration platforms, identity tools, and security software.
- Cloud and computing infrastructure: hosted storage, cloud databases, virtual machines, containers, software-as-a-service, infrastructure-as-a-service, platform-as-a-service, and edge computing.
- Telecommunications and media: telephone systems, voice over internet protocol, radio and television broadcasting, streaming, digital signage, and audiovisual production and distribution.
- Newer capabilities: artificial intelligence, machine learning, the Internet of Things (IoT), robotics, analytics, immersive technologies, digital twins, and distributed ledgers. These can be part of the broader ICT ecosystem, but none is a synonym for ICT.
The OECD’s description of the digital technology ecosystem likewise separates a physical layer—including devices, network equipment, data centers, and sensors—from a digital layer that includes software and cloud or edge computing (OECD Recommendation on the Governance of Digital Identity). ICT boundaries still vary with the context: a school, employer, regulator, or statistical framework may group particular technologies differently.
How does ICT work?
Consider a video meeting. A microphone and camera capture sound and images; software encodes and processes them; a device or cloud service handles the data; networks carry it to other participants; their devices decode and display it. Accounts, permissions, encryption, backups, and service policies help govern and protect the process.
- Create or collect: a person, application, camera, sensor, or machine generates information.
- Process: a device, server, cloud service, or embedded computer transforms or analyzes it.
- Store: the information is saved on a device, server, database, or cloud service.
- Transmit: wired or wireless networks carry it between systems.
- Exchange and act: users or other systems receive, interpret, edit, share, or respond to it.
- Protect and govern: security, privacy, identity, reliability, compliance, and backup controls shape how the system is used.
This chain shows why a device alone is rarely a complete solution. A laptop without suitable software, connectivity, support, security, and user access may not solve the information or communication problem it was meant to address.
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ICT versus IT, digital technology, and telecommunications
| Term | Typical emphasis |
|---|---|
| IT (information technology) | Computing, software, data, systems, devices, and technical support. |
| ICT | IT plus communications, telecommunications, networking, broadcasting, and information exchange. |
| Digital technology | A broad, contemporary umbrella that may include ICT as well as platforms, AI, IoT, immersive systems, and other digitally enabled technologies. |
| Telecommunications | Primarily the transmission of information; it is an important part of ICT, but does not cover all computing, storage, software, and applications. |
| Computer science | The study of computation, algorithms, software, and the foundations of computing, rather than the full applied technology ecosystem. |
In practice, some employers use “IT” to include networking and communications; others use “ICT” for the whole technology function. UNESCO’s terminology classification places communication technology under information technology, illustrating that institutional categories do not always match a neat everyday distinction (UNESCO Thesaurus). Treat “ICT is IT plus communications” as a helpful explanation, not a strict global definition.
Everyday examples and uses by sector
Smartphones, online banking, navigation, streaming, messaging, cloud photo storage, video calls, and smart-home devices are familiar examples of ICT in daily life. The same underlying ecosystem supports services and operations across many sectors:
- Education: learning-management systems, digital texts, online or hybrid classes, computer-based assessments, student records, accessibility tools, and teacher collaboration. ICT in education means using technology to support teaching, learning, administration, or access. ICT education means teaching subjects such as computing, networking, software, electronics, or digital skills. UNESCO’s ICT Competency Framework for Teachers, Version 3, sets out 18 competencies and 64 objectives across three proficiency levels for teaching, administration, and professional development (UNESCO framework reference).
- Business and finance: email, collaboration, customer support, digital payments, e-commerce, data analysis, accounting and enterprise systems, remote work, and cybersecurity.
- Healthcare: electronic health records, telemedicine, patient portals, medical imaging, health-information exchange, remote monitoring, and clinical decision support. These systems require particular attention to privacy, safety, interoperability, clinical validation, and applicable regulation.
- Government: digital identity, tax and benefits portals, online records, emergency communications, public-service platforms, and smart-city infrastructure.
- Manufacturing, energy, and transport: industrial controls, factory automation, grid monitoring, fleet tracking, connected transport, sensors, predictive maintenance, and digital twins. Connected systems can affect physical operations as well as information.
- Agriculture and media: connected equipment and sensors, logistics tools, weather and market information, broadcasting, streaming, and digital publishing.
Why ICT matters—and what it cannot guarantee
ICT can help people coordinate across distance, reach shared information, automate repetitive tasks, and provide services beyond a physical office or classroom. It supports innovation in areas such as cloud computing, analytics, AI, and connected devices, and can widen access to education, healthcare, public services, finance, and work.
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Those are possibilities, not automatic outcomes. Reliable electricity and connectivity, affordable devices and service, relevant language and content, digital skills, accessible design, trustworthy institutions, and effective support all affect whether people can benefit. A connection or device alone does not close the digital divide.
ICT also brings risks and costs that need active management:
- Cybersecurity: phishing, stolen credentials, malware and ransomware, unpatched systems, supply-chain compromise, insider misuse, denial-of-service attacks, misconfigured cloud storage, and insecure IoT devices can expose data or disrupt services. Security commonly aims to preserve confidentiality, integrity, and availability; incidents can affect information both at rest and in transit, including critical infrastructure (ITU cybersecurity overview).
- Privacy and surveillance: systems can collect, infer, retain, and share personal information. Protecting data from unauthorized access is not the same as limiting what is collected or giving people meaningful control over its use.
- Misinformation and abuse: communication platforms can spread false or harmful material. Technology alone does not determine the truth or quality of information; platform design, incentives, governance, and media literacy matter.
- Outages and dependence: reliance on one carrier, cloud provider, identity system, power source, or proprietary format can create a single point of failure or make migration difficult.
- Accessibility and exclusion: high cost, disability barriers, age, language, low bandwidth, and limited digital skills can make a technically available service unusable in practice.
- Environmental impact: impacts arise throughout the lifecycle—from raw-material extraction and manufacturing to operation, repair, and disposal. A lifecycle view considers energy, emissions, water, materials, and electronic waste; efficiency gains in one use do not erase these effects or possible rebound effects (OECD recommendation).
ICT infrastructure: a layered view
A layered model helps explain dependencies and troubleshoot failures:
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- Physical layer: devices, semiconductors, cables, radio equipment, data centers, and power.
- Connectivity layer: local networks, wireless access, cellular systems, routing, and internet exchange.
- Compute and storage layer: servers, databases, cloud platforms, and edge computing.
- Application layer: the software people use for work, education, health, government, media, and other services.
- Data and content layer: documents, records, messages, images, video, and sensor information.
- Security and identity layer: authentication, authorization, encryption, monitoring, recovery, and backup.
- People and governance layer: users, administrators, standards, policies, contracts, regulation, and training.
Systems at these layers need to interoperate. Network protocols, data formats, APIs, identity approaches, accessibility practices, security controls, and data-protection rules can all affect whether components work together and whether an organization can change providers. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the UN specialized agency for ICT, works on connectivity and technical standards and coordinates aspects of radio spectrum and satellite orbits. ICT governance is nevertheless distributed among governments, regulators, standards bodies, companies, operators, and civil society; no single institution controls every ICT product or the entire internet (ITU overview).
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How ICT is measured
“ICT growth” can refer to very different things: network coverage, household internet access, broadband subscriptions, actual use, device ownership, enterprise cloud adoption, digital skills, ICT employment, sector output, trade, e-government, affordability, speed, reliability, accessibility, or security readiness. These measures should not be treated as interchangeable. Coverage or subscriptions, for example, do not show whether a service is affordable, usable, fast enough, accessible, or safe.
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A free scan shows the junk files, broken settings and background clutter dragging Windows down - then fixes them in one click.Free scan · Windows 10 & 11ITU’s core ICT indicator framework contains more than 50 internationally agreed indicators spanning infrastructure and access, households and individuals, enterprises, the ICT sector and goods trade, education, and e-government (ITU core indicators). When comparing figures, check the geography, date, population, and whether the measure describes coverage, access, subscription, or use.
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ICT study areas and careers
ICT-related study can include computer science, information systems, IT support, networking, telecommunications, cybersecurity, software development, data management, electronics and automation, cloud administration, and digital media. UNESCO’s classification of ICT-related education fields includes audiovisual techniques and media production, computer science, computer use, and electronics and automation (UNESCO Institute for Statistics glossary).
Job families include technical support, systems and network administration, software development, cloud engineering, data analysis, database administration, cybersecurity, telecommunications engineering, business or systems analysis, project management, user-experience design, digital learning, training, enterprise architecture, and ICT policy or governance. “ICT” is not one standardized qualification: required education, certifications, experience, and licensing vary by employer and country.
Choosing an ICT tool, service, or supplier
Whether an organization is selecting a cloud service, collaboration platform, network, or managed provider, compare the complete solution rather than its headline feature or subscription price.
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- Fit: What problem and workflows must it support? Who will use it? Does it work on mobile devices, slow connections, or offline where necessary? What integrations are required?
- Security: Does it support multi-factor authentication, least-privilege access, logging, monitoring, vulnerability fixes, and a clear breach response? Who configures and manages each control?
- Privacy and compliance: What data is collected, where is it stored, who can access it, how long is it retained, and can it be exported or deleted? Which contractual and legal requirements apply?
- Reliability: What uptime commitments, backups, recovery procedures, and outage communications are provided? Can essential work continue during a provider, network, or power outage?
- Interoperability and exit: Are open standards and usable APIs supported? Can data be exported in a practical format? What would migration cost, and does the system depend on proprietary hardware, formats, or integrations?
- Accessibility and usability: Does it work with assistive technology, relevant languages, mobile devices, and the connection quality users actually have? Can people with varying digital skills use it?
- Total cost: Include hardware, licenses, connectivity, setup, migration, training, support, security, integration, compliance, downtime, renewal increases, data-transfer charges, and exit costs—not just the first monthly fee.
Cloud services do not remove infrastructure; they shift much of the computing, storage, networking, and operational work to a provider. Security responsibilities are shared and depend on the service, configuration, identity controls, and data handling. Usage-based cloud charges can also vary with workload, region, storage, and data transfer, so estimate and monitor costs rather than relying on a single advertised figure.
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