Ethics in the Age of Information
The information age is the age we live in today, and with the information age comes an age of ethics. When we deal with the new technologies introduced every day, we need to decide what we must consider ethical and unethical. We must consider all factors so that the use of the information readily available to many persons is not abused. "Information technology will be the most fundamental area of ethical concern for business in the next decade" (Houston 2). The most widely used tool of the information age is the computer, whether it be a PC or a network of computer systems. As we enter the information age the newness and power of information technologies tests the ethics of the average person, not just the criminal and causes thousands of computer crimes to be committed daily. The most common computer crime committed daily, some aware and many not, is the illegal sharing of computer software. Software is any of the programs used in operating a digital computer, as input and output programs, as defined by Funk and Wagnalls Standard Desk Dictionary. When you purchase computer software, you purchase it with the understanding that it will be for use on a single computer, once installed on that system, it is not to be loaded on any other computer. However many people are not aware of this understanding, and many load a program on a couple of computers or on a whole network of computer systems not aware that they are committing a crime.
Even though you probably will not be prosecuted for loading a program on a friends computer, this is where your ethics come in. Do you consider anything when you share a program with others? If not then consider the programmers of the software who are denied compensation for their developments every time you distribute a piece of software. "Why is it that people who wouldn't think ofstealing pack of gum will copy a $500 piece of software" (Houston 3)? A popular form off illegal software distribution is throughout the online world. Whether it be the Internet, America Online, CompuServe, Prodigy, or a BBS (Bulletin Board System), software "pirates" thrive freely online. These so called "pirates" operate by uploading pieces of software, commonly referred to as "warez", into an online service's database then sending through e-mail the rights to download them. "TheInformation Superhighway ...
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...criminal justice forces have begun to crack down on computer criminals. In 1989, three computer crime studies weresponsored by the National Institute of Justice. One of these studies examined different organizational approaches for computer crime investigation and prosecution, another documented the experiences of several dedicated computer crime units, and the third developed a computer crime investigation handbook (McEwen 2).
Computers are a permanent fact of life in work places and classrooms across the country. More businesses are likely to incorporate policies on information access and confidentiality in their employee orientation and training programs. Many schools and universities, responding from pressure around them, are beginning to incorporate computer ethics into their courses. For the criminal justice community, computer crime, which poses special challenges in detection and prosecution will require more and more attention. In order to prevent computer crimes in the future, criminal and juvenile justice agencies must look for ways to help parents, teachers, and employers educate the computer-using community to the importance of ethical computer behavior (McEwen 4).
Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Staton. They started the Women suffrage group in 1869. They gained the right for women to vote by changing the 19th Amendment. The 19th Amendment was ratified on August 18, 1920 it granted women the right to vote in all states. Before women were allowed to vote but not in all states. Some states needed women to vote in order to even be a state. This was just the start for Women. Later they would be granted better working conditions and so much more. In the United States, suffrage was one of the biggest issues for women. However, when the movement first began, many moderate feminists saw the fight for voting rights as radical and were scared that it would not go with the goals that wanted to achieve, like some of the goals that were not so controversial such as property ownership, employment, equal wages, higher education, and access to birth control. The difference between moderate and radical feminists started early in America's history and continues to be present in the women's movement for more
The division between Northern and Southern Ireland dates back to the 16th century. A succession of English monarchs had used the planting of Protestant English and Scottish people on lands seized from Irish Catholics as a way of increasing loyalty to the British Crown. This is an example of how the British treated the people of Ireland unfairly.
Women were getting tired of not having the same rights as men, so they wanted to make a move to change this. Women got so tired of staying at home while the men worked. Women wanted to get an education. So they fought for their freedom. Abigail Adams said to her husband, “in the new code of laws, remember the ladies and do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the husbands.” John’s reply was, “I cannot but laugh. Depend upon it, we know better than to repeal our masculine systems.” These were said in 1776. The women’s suffrage actually began in 1848, which was the first women’s rights convention which was held in Seneca Falls, New York. Prominent leaders began campaigning for the right to vote at State and federal levels. Susan B. Anthony was the leader for getting women their rights in the United States. Susan B. Anthony voted in Rochester, NY for the presidential election. This occurred in 1872. She was, “arrested, tried, convicted, and fined $100.” She refused to pay the fine. Supporters of The Equal Rights Amendment would march, rally, petition, and go on hunger strikes.
The entire Women’s Movement in the United States has been quite extensive. It can be traced back to 1848, when the first women’s rights convention was held in Seneca Falls, New York. After two days of discussions, 100 men and women signed the Declaration of Sentiments. Drafted by Elizabeth Cady Stanton, this document called for equal treatment of women and men under the law and voting rights for women. This gathering set the agenda for the rest of the Women’s Movement long ago (Imbornoni). Over the next 100 years, many women played a part in supporting equal treatment for women, most notably leading to the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, which allowed women the right to vote.
Steroids are being used more commonly today in normal people's lives. They are also being used so athletes can become stronger, but they have many consequences that follow the advantages. Most people believe that steroids are a false measurement of an athletes ability, and others believe that steroids are good because athletes can become stronger and make their sports more exciting to watch. This is a very important issue today because athletes today are using steroids to gain an unfair advantage over the other athletes.
Many arguments have been made for legalization of steroids in sports. One of these arguments is that even with rules making steroids illegal, athletes will not stop trying to get the advantage. Athletes may play their respective sport for the love of the game, but all athletes understand
Ethics of technology is one important aspect of ethics and is required to answer all the ethical questions which are specific to the technological age. Ethics of technology can also be defined as “Cyber-ethics”. The main reason for the existence of cyber-ethics is to examine the impact that cyber related crimes has for our social, legal and moral systems. Cyber ethics can also help us in calculating the social policies and laws that we frame with respect to issues...
The first federally prosecuted case of a computer crime occurred in October of 1966 when a consultant, Milo Arthur Bennett, hired by Minneapolis bank to program and maintain its computer systems was caught changing the bank’s checking account program. He changed the program so that it did not alert the bank of overdraft charges in his account. Mr. Bennett was found guilty of embezzlement and this began the problem of computer crimes and thus the need to define them and create laws to punish them.
Bateman, T and Snell, S. 2004. Management The New Competitive Landscape. New York, NY McGraw-Hill
The computer is considered one of the most technological advances of the twentieth century. As the general public becomes increasingly ‘computer literate,' the gap between technology and peoples' intellect notably shrinks. The readily available computers, software, and assorted output devices have enlightened many but, in turn, have increased the using of computers for unethical activities, privacy invasion and illegal purposes. Legal sanctions against abusive use of computers are a reactive approach. A proactive approach is to teach students about computer ethics in classrooms. An effective teaching method are the presentation of ethical scenarios. It is anticipated that through this method, students will personalize the need for developing ethical standards of behavior. The ultimate goal is for students, if necessary, to change their set of personal beliefs to include ethics.
Reynolds, G. (2012). Ethics in information technology ( 4th ed.). Boston, MA: Course Technology, Cengage.
“Computer ethics today is rapidly evolving into a broader and even more important field, which might reasonably be called "global information ethics". Global networks like the Internet and especially the world-wide-web are connecting people all over the earth. As Krystyna Gorniak-Kocikowska per...
A. Ethics is the collection of moral principles that controls the actions of an individual or a group. And managing the use of computers can be done by computer ethics which is set of moral principles that controls the usage of computers. Here in computer ethics we can find some common issues which contains privacy concerns, copyrighted electronic content and how the society is been affected by computers. Let us understand in brief about computer ethics by illustrating with an example that is approaching or entering into someone’s personal details or particulars though it may be attainable on a computer system but, according to computer ethics it would suggest that such an action is completely wrong.
In the early years of computers and computerized technology, computer engineers had to believe that their contribution to the development of computer technology would produce positive impacts on the people that would use it. During the infancy of computer technology, ethical issues concerning computer technology were almost nonexistent because computers back then were not as multifaceted as they are today. However, ethical issues relating to computer technology and cyber technology is undeniable in today’s society. Computer technology plays a crucial role in all aspects of our daily lives. Different forms of computer technology provide unique functionalities that allow people to perform daily activities effectively and efficiently. In modern society, we use computer and cyber technology to communicate with friends and family via social networking sites, participate in business transactions, and get current news. Different tasks require unique technological feature in computer technology to function properly. Although, unique technological features increase people’s proficiency in accomplishing various tasks, unique technological features in computer and cyber technology increase security vulnerabilities. In many cases, the security vulnerabilities in computer technology are exploited by cybercriminals to invade people’s privacy, and steal people’s identity. We know that computers have no moral compass; they cannot make moral decisions for themselves. Essentially, people make moral decisions that affect others positively or negatively depending on how they use computer technology. Some of the biggest ethical issues facing people in the computing environment include privacy concerns on the web and identity theft. Privacy concerns...
Globalization enables cyber criminals to come together and collaborate on cybercrimes and share ideas on how to commit crimes, which makes it harder for police to prevent the criminals’ crimes. These criminals target many people to gain personal information or take advantage of the victims in another way. However, there are international and national agencies committed to combating cybercrime and making progress in accomplishing this goal. Lieutenant Amanda Simmons of the South Carolina Computer Crime Center believes “there is a possibility that nearly every crime will eventually involve some high-tech piece of evidence” due to the younger, technologically-savvy generation (Wolf, par.18). This shows the extreme increase in cybercrime as a security threat.