Ethics, Values & Issues

in Cybertechnology >>> CS222.01

 Concepts, methodologies and Codes of Cyberethics

What Is Cyberethics?
 Cyberethics is the study of moral, legal, and social
issues involving cybertechnology.
 It examines the impact that cybertechnology has for
our social, legal, and moral systems.
 It also evaluates the social policies and laws that have
been framed in response to issues generated by the
development and use of cybertechnology.
 Hence, there is a reciprocal relationship here.
What Is Cybertechnology?
 Cybertechnology refers to a wide range of computing
and communications devices – from standalone
computers, to "connected" or networked computing
and communications technologies, to the Internet
istself.
 Cybertechnologies include: hand-held devices (such
as iPhones), personal computers (desktops and
laptops), mainframe computers, and so forth.
Cybertechnology (Continued)
 Networked devices can be connected directly to the
Internet.
 They also can be connected to other devices
through one or more privately owned computer
networks.
 Privately owned networks include both Local Area
Networks (LANs) and Wide Area Networks (WANs).
Why the term cyberethics?
 Cyberethics is a more accurate label than computer
ethics, which might suggest the study of ethical
issues limited to computing machines, or to
computing professionals.
 It is more accurate than Internet ethics, which is
limited only to ethical issues affecting computer
networks.
 Table 1-1: Summary of Four Phases of
Cyberethics

Phase Time Period Technological Features Associated Issues

1 1950s-1960s Stand-alone machines (large Artificial intelligence (AI),

mainframe computers) database privacy ("Big Brother")

2 1970s-1980s Minicomputers and PCs Issues from Phase 1 plus

interconnected via privately owned concerns involving intellectual
networks property and software piracy,
computer crime, privacy and the
exchange of records.

3 1990s-Present Internet and World Wide Web Issues from Phases 1 and 2 plus
concerns about free speech,
anonymity, legal jurisdiction,
virtual communities, etc.

4 Present to Convergence of information and Issues from Phases 1-3 plus

communication technologies with concerns about artificial
Near Future nanotechnology research and electronic agents ("bots") with
genetic and genomic research, etc. decision-making capabilities,
bionic chip implants,
nanocomputing research, etc.
 Are Cyberethics issues unique?
7

 Amy Boyer, 20, from NH, was shot and killed

outside her car in 1999.
 The killer, who had seen her once in middle school
and became infatuated, got her SS#, license plate,
and place of employment from the Internet. He
ambushed her as she left work.
 An early instance of cyberstalking, Boyer’s case
led to new criminal laws.
Uniqueness Issue (cont.)
 Is there anything new or unique about Boyer’s case
from an ethical point of view?
 Boyer was stalked in ways that were not possible
before cybertechnology.
 But do new ethical issues arise?
Uniqueness Issue (Continued)
 Two points of view:
 Traditionalists argue that nothing is new – crime is
crime, and murder is murder.
 Uniqueness Proponents argue that cybertechnology
has introduced (at least some) new and unique
ethical issues that could not have existed before
computers.
Uniqueness Issue (Continued)
 Both sides seem correct on some claims, and both
seem to be wrong on others.
 Traditionalists underestimate the role that issues of
scale and scope that apply because of the impact of
computer technology.
 Cyberstalkers can stalk multiple victims
simultaneously (scale) and globally (because of the
scope or reach of the Internet).
 They also can operate without ever having to leave
the comfort of their homes.
Uniqueness Issue (Continued)
 Uniqueness proponents tend to overstate the effect
that cybertechnology has on ethics per se.
 Maner (1996) argues that computers are uniquely
fast, uniquely malleable, etc.
 There may indeed be some unique aspects of
computer technology.
Uniqueness Issue (Continued)
 But uniqueness proponents tend to confuse unique
features of technology with unique ethical issues.
 They use the following logical fallacy:
 Cybertechnology has some unique technological features.
 Cybertechnology generates ethical issues.
 Therefore, the ethical issues generated by cybertechnology
must be unique.
Uniqueness Issue (Continued)
 Traditionalists and uniqueness proponents are each
partly correct.
 Traditionalists correctly point out that no new
ethical issues have been introduced by computers.
 Uniqueness proponents are correct in that
cybertechnology has complicated our analysis of
traditional ethical issues.
Uniqueness Issue (Continued)
 So we must distinguish between: (a) unique
technological features, and (b) any (alleged) unique
ethical issues.
 Two scenarios from the text:
 (a) Computer professionals designing and coding a
controversial computer system
 (b) Software piracy
Alternative Strategy for Anal- yzing the
Uniqueseness Issue

 James Moor (1985) argues that computer

technology generates “new possibilities for human
action” because computers are logically malleable.
 Logical malleability, in turn, introduces policy
vacuums.
 Policy vacuums often arise because of conceptual
muddles.
Case Illustration of a Policy Vacuum: Duplicating
Software

 In the early 1980s, there were no clear laws

regarding the duplication of software programs,
which was made easy because of personal
computers.
 A policy vacuum arose.
 Before the policy vacuum could be filled, we had
to clear up a conceptual muddle: What exactly is
software?
 Laws vs.
Software Controlling Technology
17

 Attempting to control technology through law and

regulation has often been futile.
 Correcting technology with other technology has
been more effective.
 Ex. Laws suppressing pornography have been
rough to enforce but software that filters out
pornography has been more successful.
Cyberethics as a Branch of Applied Ethics

 Applied ethics, unlike theoretical ethics, examines

"practical" ethical issues.
 It analyzes moral issues from the vantage-point of
one or more ethical theories.
 Ethicists working in fields of applied ethics are more
interested in applying ethical theories to the analysis
of specific moral problems than in debating the
ethical theories themselves.
Cyberethics as a Branch of Applied Ethics
(continued)

 Three distinct perspectives of applied ethics (as

applied to cyberethics):
 Professional Ethics
 Philosophical Ethics
 Descriptive Ethics
Perspective # 1: Professional Ethics

 According to this view, cyberethics is the field that

identifies and analyzes issues of ethical responsibility
for computer professionals.
 Consider a computer professional's role in designing,
developing, and maintaining computer hardware and
software systems.
 Suppose a programmer discovers that a software product
she has been working on is about to be released for sale to
the public, even though it is unreliable because it contains
"buggy" software.
 Should she "blow the whistle?"
Professional Ethics
 Don Gotterbarn (1991) argued that all genuine
computer ethics issues are professional ethics issues.
 Computer ethics, for Gotterbarn is like medical ethics
and legal ethics, which are tied to issues involving
specific professions.
 He notes that computer ethics issues aren’t about
technology – e.g., we don’t have automobile ethics,
airplane ethics, etc.
Criticism of Professional Ethics Perspective

 Gotterbarn’s model for computer ethics seems too

narrow for cyberethics.
 Cyberethics issues affect not only computer
professionals; they effect everyone.
 Before the widespread use of the Internet,
Gotterbarn’s professional-ethics model may have
been adequate.
Perspective # 2: Philosophical Ethics

 From this perspective, cyberethics is a field of

philosophical analysis and inquiry that goes beyond
professional ethics (Gotterbarn).

 Moor (1985), defines computer ethics as:

 ...the analysis of the nature and social impact of computer
technology and the corresponding formulation and
justification of policies for the ethical use of such
technology. [Italics Added.]
Philosophical Ethics Perspective (continued)

 Moor argues that automobile and airplane

technologies did not affect our social policies and
norms in the same kinds of fundamental ways that
computer technology has.
 Automobile and airplane technologies have
revolutionized transportation, resulting in our ability
to travel faster and farther than was possible in
previous eras.
 But they did not have the same impact on our legal
and moral systems as cybertechnology.
Philosophical Ethics: Standard Model of Applied
Ethics

 Philip Brey (2000) describes the “standard

methodology” used by philosophers in applied ethics
research as having three stages:
 1) Identify a particular controversial practice as a
moral problem.
 2) Describe and analyze the problem by clarifying
concepts and examining the factual data associated
with that problem.
 3)Apply moral theories and principles to reach a
position about the particular moral issue.
Perspective #3: Cyberethics as a Field of Descriptive Ethics

 The professional and philosophical perspectives both

illustrate normative inquiries into applied ethics
issues.
 Normative inquiries or studies are contrasted with
descriptive studies.
 Descriptive investigations report about "what is the
case“; normative inquiries evaluate situations from
the vantage-point of the question: "what ought to be
the case."
Descriptive Ethics Perspective (continued)

 Scenario: A community’s workforce and the

introduction of a new technology.
 Suppose a new technology displaces 8,000 workers
in a community.
 If we analyze the issues solely in terms of the number
of jobs that were gained or lost in that community,
our investigation is essentially descriptive in nature.
 We are simply describing an impact that technology
X has for Community Y.
Descriptive Ethics Perspective (continued)

 Descriptive vs. Normative Claims

 Consider three assertions:
 (1) "Bill Gates served as the Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft
Corporation for many years.”
 (2) "Bill Gates should expand Microsoft’s product offerings.“
 (3) “Bill Gates should not engage in business practices that are unfair
to competitors.”
 Claims (2) And (3) are normative, (1) is descriptive;
(2) is normative but nonmoral, while (3) is both
normative and moral.
Figure 1-1: Descriptive vs. Normative Claims

Descriptive Normative
(Report or describe what is the case) (Prescribe what ought to be the case)

Non-moral Moral

Prescribe or evaluate Prescribe or evaluate

in matters involving in matters having to
standards such as art and sports   do with fairness and
(e.g., criteria for a good painting Obligation (e.g., criteria
or an outstanding athlete). for just and unjust actions
and policies).
Some Benefits of Using the Descriptive Approach

 Huff & Finholt (1994) claim that when we

understand the descriptive aspect of social effects of
technology, the normative ethical issues become
clearer.
 The descriptive perspective prepare us for our
subsequent analysis of ethical issues that affect our
system of policies and laws.
Table 1-2: Summary of Applied Cyberethics
Perspectives

Type of Perspective Associated Issues Examined

Disciplines

Professional Computer Science Professional Responsibility

Engineering System Reliability/Safety
Library/Information Codes of Conduct
Science
Philosophical Philosophy Privacy & Anonymity
Law Intellectual Property
Free Speech
Descriptive Sociology Impact of cybertechnology
Behavioral Sciences on governmental/financial/
educational institutions and
socio-demographic groups
 General Cyberethics Theory and Methodology
32

 Lessig
 Moor
 Finnis
 Brey
 Larry Lessig’s Framework
33

 Four constraints that regulate our behavior in real

space: laws, norms, the market and code /
architecture
 Laws – rules imposed by the government which
are enforced by ex post (after the fact) sanctions
 The complicated IRS tax code is a set of laws that
dictates how much we owe. If we break these laws
we are subject to fines / penalties.
 Larry Lessig’s Framework
34

• Social Norms – expressions of the community. Most

have well defined sense of normalcy in norms,
standards and behavior.
– Cigar smokers are not welcome at most functions.
• The Market – prices set for goods, services or labor.
– $3.95 for coffee and local coffee shop
• Architecture – physical constraints of our behavior.
– A room without windows imposes certain constraints
because no one can see outside.
 Real Life vs. Cyberspace
35

 Subject to the same four constraints

 Laws – provide copyright and patent protection
 Markets – advertisers gravitate towards more popular web
sites
 Architectural – software code such as programs and
protocols (constrain and control our activities). Ex. Web
sites demanding username/passwords and software
deployed to filter spam and certain email.
 Norms – Internet etiquette and social customs. Flaming is
a bad norm.
 James Moor
36

 Moor’s list of core human goods (considered thin)

include:
 Life
 Happiness – pleasure and absence of pain
 Autonomy – goods that we need to complete our
projects (ability, security, knowledge, freedom,
opportunity, reason)
 John Finnis
37

• Finnis’ version of human good (considered thick)

includes:
– Life
– Knowledge
– Play (and skillful work)
– Aesthetic experience
– Sociability
– Religion
– Practical reasonableness (includes autonomy)
• Participation in these goods allow us to achieve
genuine human flourishing
 Both Moor and Finnis Believe
38

 Ultimate good, human flourishing of ourselves and

others should be our guidepost of value, serving as a
basis for crafting laws, developing social institutions
and regulating the Internet.
 Golden Rule (Matthew 7:12)
 “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do
also to them”
 Immanual Kant stated “Act so that you treat humanity
always as an end and never as a means”
 Blocking Software
39

• Those who write programs or create laws should

rely on ethics as their guide.
• Code writers need to write in such a way that
preserves basic moral values such as autonomy and
privacy.
• Many feel technology is just a tool and it is up to us
whether this powerful tool is used for good or ill
purposes.
 Technological Realism
40

 Two extremes:
 Up to us what happens
 Technology locks us into inescapable cage
 Technological Realism – acknowledges that
technology has reconfigured our political and
social reality and it does influence human behavior
in particular ways.
 Two Broad Ethical Frameworks
41

 Teleological – rightness or wrongness of an action

depends on whether the goal or desired end is
achieved (look at the consequences – maybe OK to
lie). Sometimes called consequentialism
 Deontological – is an action right or wrong. Act
out of obligation or duty. Prohibition against
harming the innocent.
 Utilitarianism
42

 Teleological
 Most popular version of consequentialism
 Right course of action is to promote the most
general good
 The action is good if it produces the greatest net
benefits or lowest net cost
 Contractarianism
43

 Deontologic
 Rights-based
 Looks at moral issues from viewpoint of the human
rights that may be at stake
 Negative right – implies one is free from external
interference in one’s affairs (state can’t tap phones)
 Positive right – implies a requirement that the holder of
this right be provided with whatever one needs to pursue
legitimate interests (rights to medical care and education)
 Pluralism
44

• Deontologic
• Duty-based
• Actions only have moral worth when they are done
for the sake of duty
– Ex. If everyone would break promises there would be no
such thing as a promise.
– Consider this when looking at intellectual property
– Ask the question “What if everybody did what you are
doing?”
– Respect for other human beings
 7 Moral Duties
45

1. Keep promises and tell truth (fidelity)

2. Right the wrongs you inflicted (reparation)
3. Distribute goods justly (justice)
4. Improve the lot of others with respect to virtue,
intelligence and happiness (beneficence)
5. Improve oneself with respect to virtue, intelligence
and happiness (self-improvement)
6. Exhibit gratitude when appropriate (gratitude)
7. Avoid injury to others (noninjury)
 New Natural Law
46

 Good should be done and evil avoided

 This principle is too general.
 Flaws in Moral Theories
47

 None are without flaws or contradictions

 4 frameworks converge on same solutions but
suggest different solutions
 One must decide which framework they will follow
and “trump” the others
 Principlism
48

 Popularized by Beauchamp and Childress

 “At first glance” one principle should be given
more weight than others but
 4 principles are: autonomy, nonmaleficence,
beneficence and justice
 Autonomy
49

 Is a necessary condition of moral responsibility

 Individuals shape their destiny according to their
notion of the best sort of life worth living

 If deprived of their autonomy, someone is not

treated with the respect they deserve.
 Nonmaleficence
50

 Above all else – do no harm

 Beneficence
51

 This is a positive duty

 We should act in such a way that we advance the
welfare of other people when we are able to do so
 Justice
52

 Similar cases should be treated in similar ways

 Fair treatment
Is Cyber-technology Neutral?
 Technology seems neutral, at least initially.
 Consider the cliché: “Guns don’t kill people, people
kill people.”
 Corlann Gee Bush (19997) argues that gun
technology, like all technologies, is biased in certain
directions.
 She points out that certain features inherent in gun
technology itself cause guns to be biased in a
direction towards violence.
Is Technology Neutral (continued)?
 Bush uses an analogy from physics to illustrate the
bias inherent in technology.
 An atom that either loses or gains electrons through
the ionization process becomes charged or valenced
in a certain direction.
 Bush notes that all technologies, including guns, are
similarly valenced in that they tend to "favor" certain
directions rather than others.
 Thus technology is biased and is not neutral.
A "Disclosive" Method for Cyberethics

 Brey (2001) believes that because of embedded

biases in cybertechnology, the standard applied-
ethics methodology is not adequate for identifying
cyberethics issues.
 We might fail to notice certain features embedded in
the design of cybertechnology.
 Using the standard model, we might also fail to
recognize that certain practices involving
cybertechnology can have moral implications.
Disclosive Method (Continued)
 Brey notes that one weakness of the “standard
method of applied ethics” is that it tends to focus on
known moral controversies
 So that model fails to identify those practices
involving cybertechnology which have moral
implications but that are not yet known.
 Brey refers to these practices as having morally
opaque (or morally non-transparent) features, which
he contrasts with "morally transparent” features.
Figure 1-2
Embedded Technological Features Having Moral Implications

Transparent Features Morally Opaque Features

Known Features Unknown Features

Users are aware of Users are not even
these features but do aware of the
not realize they have technological
moral implications. features
that have moral
implications
Examples can  
include:Web Forms Examples can
and search- include:Data mining
engine tools. and Internet cookies.
A Multi-Disciplinary & Multi-Level Method for
Cyberethics

 Brey’s “disclosive method” is multidisciplinary

because it requires the collaboration of computer
scientists, philosophers, and social scientists.
 It also is multi-level because the method for
conducting computer ethics research requires the
following three levels of analysis:
 disclosure level
 theoretical level
 application level.
Table 1-3: Three Levels in Brey’s “Disclosive Model”

Level Disciplines Involved Task/Function

Disclosive Computer Science Disclose embedded

Social Science features in computer
(optional) technology that have
moral import

Theoretical Philosophy Test newly disclosed

features against
standard ethical
theories

Application Computer Science Apply standard or

Philosophy newly revised/
Social Science formulated ethical
theories to the issues
 Three-step Strategy for Approaching Cyberethics
Issues

Step 1. Identify a practice involving cyber-technology, or a feature in that technology, that is controversial from a
moral perspective.
1a. Disclose any hidden (or opaque) features or issues that have moral implications
1b. If the issue is descriptive, assess the sociological implications for relevant social institutions and
socio-demographic and populations.
1c. If there are no ethical/normative issues, then stop.
1d. If the ethical issue is professional in nature, assess it in terms of existing codes of conduct/ethics for
relevant professional associations (see Chapter 4).
1e. If one or more ethical issues remain, then go to Step 2.
Step 2. Analyze the ethical issue by clarifying concepts and situating it in a context.
2a. If a policy vacuums exists, go to Step 2b; otherwise go to Step 3.
2b. Clear up any conceptual muddles involving the policy vacuum and go to Step 3 .
Step 3. Deliberate on the ethical issue. The deliberation process requires two stages:
3a. Apply one or more ethical theories (see Chapter 2) to the analysis of the moral issue, and then go
to step 3b.
3b. Justify the position you reached by evaluating it against the rules for logic/critical thinking (see
Chapter 3).