Ethical Changes Within Society

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02 Nov 2017

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Abstract

The problem to be investigated is the ethical use of information technology and applying in a modern society. History has shown that information technology had limited applications and impacts on society when it was first introduced but today, however, this has changed as information technology has become a very important part of nearly every business, including those involving personal activities (Brooks, 2010). Subsequently, this particular trend indicates that there are more opportunities for individuals to apply the use of information technology in an unethical manner. With the growth of information technology it therefore becomes essential for various organizations and businesses to realize the ethical concerns surrounding the use of information technology and to develop some measure of action to prevent, or at least mitigate, ethical dilemmas caused by certain infractions.

Ethical Changes within Society

Ethical changes brought about by the advent of information technology in society are extensive. In years past, uses of information technology was reserved for very specific industries. Some studies even say that there was an elitist segregation related to who worked within information technology fields and what pieces of information were impacted by information technology (Brooks, 2010). This view all but changed in the 1990s when the field of information technology developed into a rapidly evolving industry. Today, nearly every person in society, all from different walks of life interact with technology in some form or another on a daily basis. In the western part of the world this interaction is practically non-stop from the time an individual gets up in the morning until they go to sleep at night (Nuyen, 2004). Since people today have a larger access to information through technological methods, the risks that this information can be used or obtained in an unethical manner are often at a much higher level.

As company employees and the general public continue to have access to sensitive information and also to non-sensitive information a number of ethical changes in society have taken place. Some of these types of changes involve the accessing of private information for personal gain, invoking reverse engineering programs for the purpose of obtaining of trade secrets and the using of various forms of information technology to harass or victimize other individuals (Brooks, 2010). New ethical concerns surrounding infractions such as these need to lead to the development of a number of laws and security measures. A main focus of these measures is to provide some level of protection for people that may be affected from the vulnerabilities caused by the large uses of information technology; however, it should be noted that these protective actions have not solved the problem; they have only served to lessen the impact (Jourdan, Rainer, Marshall & Ford, 2010). Regardless of the types of changes that are enacted, there are some areas of information technology that continues to be used to for unethical practices such as embezzlement, identity theft and social bullying which occurs on the social networks.

The Ethical Use of Information Technology

The evaluation of the ethical use of information technology should be conducted on two levels. The first level is the private level, or the personal level. At this level, the relation is focused on how technology relates to individuals as compared to how the individuals actually utilize their technology (Brooks, 2010). The ethical use of information technology on the personal level may include such methods like communicating with friends, family and colleagues, making online purchases and uploading or publishing information online. Additional methods to be considered may also include accessing personal banking information, making withdrawals or deposits at an ATM, connecting with an automated information system to request information about an account or a business activity which can amount to collecting and sending of data for legitimate purposes.

According to the article by Brooks, "unethical behavior, on the personal level, occurs when the individual uses the information technology in a fraudulent or malicious manner" (Brooks, 2010). Some of the most common examples of exploiting information technology for fraudulent purposes can include hacking into another person's computer to obtain their personal information, hacking into a company network so as to corrupt or steal its data, fraudulently establishing a new identity using information that had been stolen or obtained under false pretenses (Brooks, 2010). Further studies have also indicated that other malicious activities that people engage in online include cyber-bullying, the deploying of viruses or Trojan as well as the use of online scams to victimize individuals (King, 2010). Although society continues to view these behaviors unethical, the solutions to these problematic behaviors also present ethical issues of varying degrees. When thinking of alternatives to reduce the number of unethical practices, the biggest problem seems to be the balancing of constitutionally guaranteed rights, such as freedom of speech, and how it pertains to what protective measures can best be taken when using information technology when used to harass or victimize individuals (King, 2010). Other ethical problems that can develop as more solutions become available (or that are proposed) include personal liability issues and assessing of who is responsible for paying for the development of additional security measures that are applicable to current or future technology trends

As mentioned previously, the second level of ethical concern related to the use of information technology concerns the commercial use of technology. In this area, the biggest ethical dilemmas refer to how companies utilize their information technology and how their policy impacts their customers (Brooks, 2010). For example, a recent ethical debate that was centered around the uses of commercialized technology focused on the practice of applying data mining to determine the online browsing behaviors of customers. In this instance, the controversy was that certain companies were actually monitoring the online behaviors of visitors to their online sites, e.g. what keywords were being used, what information was being accessed and even the type of transactions they were engaging in. Once these behaviors were noted, or logged, they were then entered into a central database and the data was then sold to marketing firms and other companies without the permission of the online visitors. When thinking of both the ethical and unethical uses of information technology it should be noted that this is just one example of unethical behavior engaged in by commercial organizations. (Butler, 2007). While personal ethical infractions are viewed in society as serious, there is seldom little enforced legislation to cover the majority of the infractions that occur whereas, the ethical infractions that occur on a commercial level are usually also dealt with through the creation of legislation that restricts unethical behaviors that the public strongly objects to.

Developing a Code of Ethics for IT Use

In considering how information technology has been applied and used today, the implementation and enforcement of a code of ethics governing its use has been a subject leading to many controversies. One of the first areas of controversy is in the actual development of such a plan. This view is because it is thought that such an ethical code could be a negative sign in that society would see companies as trying to "engender society change" to fit the company infrastructure (Schwartz, 2000); as opposed to remaining separate from social pressures. The overall concern when applying any ethical code is that the company is being forced into a socialistic trap that will impede the continued operation of the organization.

In addition to the first controversy as being engendering societal change, another problem that emerges from the desire to develop a code of ethics for companies and individuals engaging in information technology usage is that the field itself is a unique field with characteristics that make it separate from other types of business industries or organizations (Nuyen, 2004). What this means in itself is that in consideration of ethical codes which could be applied to normal business practices, those same ethics may not be the same as those developed for information technology. For example, the expression of ideas and freedom of speech are also contained within the area if information technology, therefore it could be argued that technology itself may be protected by constitutional rights which would make the setting ethical limitations illegal and unethical However, it is possible to get around this problematic issue by taking two steps. The first step is to discover what are the current existing laws, what type of laws can be created, and also what laws can be applied to situations to prevent unethical professional activities from an organization (Butler, 2007). The second step then becomes the process of developing a professional code of ethics that defines how business employees should be allowed to use the company technology that is provided by the organization. Implementing of this step should ensure that the restrictions placed by the business concerning the use of its technology are both legal and constitutional (Miller & Jets, 2009). Depending on how a company decides to implement a code of ethics, the simple steps that were previously mentioned should be able to help business leaders to implement effective ethical controls that do not infringe upon free speech or other constitutional rights during the employee’s personal time. Additionally, the following of these steps can also lead to the protection and security of the organizations areas information technology and its data during work king hours.

Discussion & Conclusion

When it comes to discussing ethics and all areas involving information technology, the creation and implementation of a code of ethics for the continuing uses of technology should be focused around the reduction and elimination of opportunities to engage in unethical behaviors. This is mainly because a large majority of people in today’s society have nearly unrestricted access to all forms of information. Subsequently, this easy access has shown a dangerous vulnerability for the unethical use of technology and its accessibility to varying forms of data. If companies really want to reduce occurrences of unethical behavior then they need to be more willing to focus their legal rights on controlling access to data and their company technology by enforcing a code of ethics that describe exactly how employees and others can use company information technology. To clarify even further, even at the risk of sounding redundant, Companies that observe actions by their employees as being unethical need to be willing to take immediate corrective action. Not only would this serve as a measure to protect their company assets but also those of its customers and would aide in establishing a standard of no-tolerance for such actions.

In the areas of information technology it is not difficult to define its usage and how ethical behavior should be applied; however, on the other hand, it is difficult to implement standards of ethical behaviors. This is because of the various and often legally protected characteristics of the areas concerning the use of information technology. In response to protecting company assets and the rights of the individual, it has become essential to create a set of standards that include both ethical and legal codes that govern the legitimate opportunities of employees to engage in unethical behaviors while using company associated information technology.



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