Computers, Information Technology, the Internet, Ethics, Society and Human Values Philip Pecorino, Ph.D. Queensborough Community College, CUNY Chapter 2 Computers and Ethics |
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Questions What is so unique or interesting or threatening about computers and information networks that we should want to think about it so carefully and have books and societies and college classes about it?
What is the truly unique element in this issue of digital games in so far as ethics are concerned? Is it the mass availability of the product and its impact on a generation of children and society? Is this made more serious because of computers and the internet?
CASE: COMPUTER CHEATING CASE
Think about this case focusing upon what new possibilities have been created by computers and information networks and then the risks and threats posed by them. Is this case an entirely new sort of situation or is it simply an old situation with new elements in it due to the computers?
************************************************************************** The following are remarks, reflections and responses to issues and questions related to this matters in this chapter. Each offering is proceeded by the authors name and institutional affiliation.
What is unique about computers as far as ethical issues?
How should the
ethical problems presented by Computer Technology, Information
Technology, Information Networks and the Internet be approached?
Marie Lafferty, CUNY, SPS, 2007
What is unique about
computers as far as ethical issues? How do policy vacuums come about?
Terrell Ward Bynum
in “A Very Short History of Computer Ethics” 1 quotes Gorniak
from a 1995 Ethicomp paper:
“The very nature of
the Computer Revolution indicates that the ethic of the future will have
a global character. It will be global in a spatial sense, since it will
encompass the entire Globe. It will also be global in the sense that it
will address the totality of human actions and relations.” (p.179)
The above hypothesis
is one that stands out as unique when looking at ethical issues as they
relate to computers. Never before has the world been in such close
communication on a person-to-person basis. A nation’s leaders may have
been required to entertain ethical issues and shape policy in relation
to what others around the globe do, but computers, and in particular the
internet, draw each of us personally into a global society, a society
that may exhibit very different old values, and which is in the process
of creating new ones.
In addition, the
computer itself presents us with unique situations related to the
function and functioning of computers. Walter Maner2 leads
us to conclude this by listing eight ways that computers differ from
other inventions of the past. They are:
While Maner goes
into some detail on each of the above, we can summarize these qualities
briefly: The manner in which computers store data presents its own
limits and sometimes creates unanticipated problems, in addition the
data is discrete. A small error or change can have larger consequences,
and lastly the unique form of coding has already been shown to become
obsolete in some cases and unreadable, perhaps causing lost information
to future generation.
With regard to
usage, other issues are unique: computers generate data faster than
humans have ever had the ability to do and perhaps faster than we can
respond, data is easily duplicated (increasing potential for theft), and
possibilities for manipulation are uniquely cheap (one example given is
theft of a fraction of a cent goes unnoticed but rapidly adds to
millions.)
When we add to those
issues, the complexity of the programming, with few known rules (I say
few because some groups have established some rules in the intervening
years since Maner’s paper) and the logical malleability that James Moor3
speaks of, i.e., computers can be molded to do any activity, and their
universality may present unique requirements to provide access.
All together these
qualities of computers, the uses to which we put them, and the global
scale in which they operate all add up to a unique set of circumstances
that ethicists have never had to address within this particular set of
parameters. Maner 2 puts it this way:
“Lack of an
effective analogy forces us to discover new moral values, formulate new
moral principles, develop new policies, and find new ways to think about
the issues presented to us. For all of these reasons, the kind of issues
presented deserves to be addressed separately from others that might at
first appear similar. At the very least, they have been so transformed
by computing technology that their altered form demands special
attention:”
Policy vacuums occur
in large part because the technology vastly outdistances humans’ ability
to keep up. Deborah Johnson4 references Moor (1985) to
describe policy vacuums:
“Thinkof the ethical
questions surrounding computer and information technology as policy
vacuums. Computer and information technology creates
innumerable opportunities. This means that we are confronted with choices
about whether and how to pursue those opportunities, and we find a vacuum
of policies on how to make those choices… Since the early day, computer
technology has been far from stagnant, and with each new innovation or
application, new policy vacuums have been created”
As Johnson notes, there is a never-ending supply
of these questions, each one bringing forth new potentials for response.
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1.
A Very Short History of Computer Ethics – Terrell Ward Bynum
2 Unique
Ethical Problems in Information Technology by Walter Maner Science and
Engineering Ethics, volume 2, number 2 (April, 1996), pages 137-154.
3.
What is Computer Ethics? – James H. Moor
4. Johnson,
Deborah. Computer Ethics, 3rd ed. Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle River,
NJ, 2001
How should the
ethical problems presented by Computer Technology, Information
Technology, Information Networks and the Internet be approached?
Like any ethical
questions, ethical issues in computer technology and IT must be
approached from a rational and questioning beginning. Knowledge of the
technology itself: We must realize from the outset that we are at the
beginning of the technology and we simply don’t’ yet know that what
computers will be capable of doing in the future. That being said, the
only place to start in discussing ethical issues is from where we now
stand. Deborah Johnson in Computer Ethics (p.7) labels this a
traditionalist account
but
from where else would we begin?
There is a long
history of thought and reasoning on well-known ethical issues, and a
large variety of approaches to solving new ethical problems. These are
already well established. In some ways, ethical issues involving
computers are the same or related to these previously discussed issues.
We have established moral values on such matters as stealing, privacy,
ownership and responsibility. We can and should use these values as a
guide in looking at the new issues that arise over computer usage and
creation. But we also have to recognize two things: first, the old is
only a starting point, and computer ethics cannot be a formulaic re-hash
of the old without consideration of the differences inherent in the new;
secondly, computers form a unique set of circumstances that we haven’t
faced before. New circumstances have already arisen and will continue to
become known. New ethical approaches will come about, and perhaps new
outcomes.
Jack Friedman, CUNY, SPS, 2007
The ethical problems
presented by Computer Technology, Information Technology, Information
Networks and the Internet should be approached with an open mind. Being
stuck in today’s paradigms will never lead us to answering the moral
problems related to computing. I believe there needs to be international
convention on policies and protocol related to computing and the
internet. The best analogy I can think of is the World Court. Though not
respected by many, it is still a useful tool in reducing lawlessness and
anarchy. Like any convention dealing with computer ethics, it will not
be errorless and flawless. Because of the fluidity of the technology, it
must be adaptable and amendable. I think a good approach would be for
nations to find the issues we can all agree upon and later tackle the
more difficult ethical issues which may divide us. Like any meaningful
law, the issue of enforcement must be addressed. That may be the larger
problem. Even if we formulate a code of ethics and standards, it can
only be as good as the enforcement tool that goes with it. Clearly,
there is no simple answer to this question. However, the lack of an easy
answer is in no way an excuse not to look for one. As I stated before,
failure to address these issues and fill these policy vacuums will
certainly have dire costs.
Richard Vida, CUNY, SPS, 2007
I have no specific
answers on how to ethically approach the many computer technological
quandaries we face at this time. Nor how we determine and elaborate on
which of Fairweather’s “Ten Commandments of Computer Ethics” we are
going to be able to uphold. But I do believe that to construct a
completely safe cyber environment, a code of computer ethics will need
to be taught in grade school as a part of our civics, social studies
classes. Not to regulate and control ones use of the technology, or to
impose a nations belief system, but simply to educate individuals on the
consequences attached to this cyber freedom. Discipline and
responsibility is most important as Terrell Ward Bynum mentions in his
article “Discipline in its Infancy.” Ultimately it is up to us as a
society to take on the responsibility and demand of the creators and
regulators of this technology what we will and won’t accept. To become
apathetic in the infancy of this new age will unfortunately bring about
more confusion and more negative results to an amazing technology that
must continue to grow. But as with any garden we shall reap what we
sow. |
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Web Surfer's Caveat: These are class notes, intended to comment on readings and amplify class discussion. They should be read as such. They are not intended for publication or general distribution. ppecorino@qcc.cuny.edu @copyright 2006 Philip A. Pecorino Last updated 8-2006 Return to Table of Contents |
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