List any six ethical issues in computer?
Answers
They are "(1) computer crime; (2) responsibility for computer failure; (3) protection of computer property, records, and software; and (4) privacy of the company, workers, and customers”. (De George 338) This part of our discussion will focus primarily on computer crime and privacy.
Computer Crime
Computer Crime is intellectual, white-collar crime. Those that commit such crimes must be intelligent enough to manipulate a computer system and in such a position to access it in the first place. One example of computer crime is stealing funds via computer. Often the worst that can happen to such a thief is that he/she is merely required to return the stolen money. Many times that person will be fired, assuming he/she is an employee, but may be quickly hired by a competitor because of his/her skill. This creates practically no deterrent to committing computer theft because legal action is not often taken against the perpetrator.
Another example is unauthorized computer entry. In entering a computer unauthorized, the perpetrator can steal a company's trade secrets and data. Such a crime could be committed by an employee aiming to sell such secrets to a competitor or by an outside source wanting to steal such secrets to promote his/her own well-being. This crime involves both an invasion of property and privacy and also compromises the computer system itself.
This crime goes along with the idea of hacking. Hacking is defined as "any computer-related activity which is not sanctioned or approved of by an employer or owner of a system or network” (Forester 44). Such an activity deals with the ethical dilemma of who actually owns information and who should have access to that information. At many universities, Computer Science professors have their students hack into the university's system to prove their skill and knowledge of computer systems.
This poses a serious ethical dilemma. Since the students are not causing any harm to the system, is such an action morally reprehensible or acceptable? Many computer professionals feel that this act is not ethically sanctioned and the Computer Science professors must address the issue of computer ethics more fervently in their classes.
Privacy
Another area of computer ethics regards privacy. The privacy issue focuses on the computer's most basic functions, "its capacity to store, organized, and exchange records”. (Johnson 58) A great deal of the concern has to do with the amount of information gathering that is made possible by computers. This puts people's personal information in a vulnerable position. If someone hacks into a computer system, all this information is at his/her disposal. In this way, such crimes as identity theft can occur.
Furthermore, when stored information can be easily exchanged, the effect of a small error can be magnified. Such errors can stay in the system indefinitely. Computers "create the possibility that incidents in one's life or errors in one's records will follows one through life, profoundly affecting how one is perceived and treated”. (Johnson 60) It is because of this effect that people lose control over their lives and the information about them.
Thus it seems that there are both good and bad consequences of computerized records. A good consequence is that an organization's need for information suggests "access to relevant information might improve decision making and, therefore, make organizations more efficient”. (Johnson 63) This in turn provides a positive result for the individual because it could mean better services or savings.
However, bad consequences still exist. These are related to the fact that "information is used to make decisions about individuals and such decisions may be based on irrelevant and inaccurate information."(Johnson 63) There is no way to insure that the power exercised by organizations because of this access to information is used fairly. Thus it seems that there should be a balance between the need for information on the part of an organization and the interests of the individual.
Ethical Responsibility of IT Pros
Another area of concern in conjunction with all of this has to do with the power computer professionals wield because of their knowledge of computer systems. Computer professionals can act in one of two ways: "(1) When it is unclear, assume information is in the public realm until there is some evidence that it is not; or (2) When it is unclear, assume information is private unless or until there is evidence that it is not”. (Johnson 70) It is desirable that a professional adopt the second rule because it allows the professional to protect him or herself from ethical indiscretions, while the first allow for a greater chance of eth