Professional Practices

“Concepts, Methodologies

and Codes of Cyber Ethics”

 Contents
• Introduction
• Phases of cyber ethics
• Uniqueness issue
• Cyber ethics as branch of Applied Ethics
• Two Broad frameworks of Cyber ethics
• Three-step Strategy for Approaching Cyber
ethics Issues

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 What Is Cyber ethics?
• Cyber ethics is the study of moral, legal, and social
issues involving cyber technology.
• It examines the impact that cyber technology 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 cyber technology.
 What Is Cyber technology?
• Cyber technology refers to a wide range of computing
and communications devices – from standalone
computers, to "connected" or networked computing
and communications technologies, to the Internet
itself.
• Cyber technologies include: hand-held devices (such
as iPhones), personal computers (desktops and
laptops), mainframe computers, and so forth.
 Cyber technology
• 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 cyber ethics?
• 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.
 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,
secrecy, 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.
 Uniqueness Issue
• Is there anything new or unique about crimes
that are favored by cyber technology?
• Two points of view:
• Traditionalists argue that nothing is new –
crime is crime, and murder is murder.
• Uniqueness Proponents argue that cyber
technology has introduced (at least some)
new and unique ethical issues that could not
have existed before computers.
 Uniqueness Issue
• Both sides seem correct on some claims, and both
seem to be wrong on others.
• Traditionalists underestimate the role of scale and
scope that apply because of the impact of computer
technology.
• Cyber stalkers 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
• Uniqueness proponents tend to overstate the
effect that cyber technology has on ethics.
• Maner (1996) argues that computers are
uniquely fast, uniquely malleable, etc.
• There may indeed be some unique aspects of
computer technology.
 Uniqueness Issue
• 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
• 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
• So we must distinguish between
– unique technological features
– unique ethical issues.
• Two scenarios from the text:
– Computer professionals designing and coding a
controversial computer system
– Software piracy
 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
• 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.
 Philosophical Ethics Perspective
• 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
• 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
• 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 non-moral, while (3) is both
normative and moral.
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).
Two Broad Ethical Frameworks
• 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)
• Deontological – is an action right or wrong.
Act out of obligation or duty. Prohibition
against harming the innocent.

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 Two Broad Ethical Frameworks
• The good of the many—at core a teleological
framework. An action is judged by how it
affects the many. The point of reference is in
the masses, not the individual.
• The good of the individual—at core a
deontological framework. An action is judged
by an internalized code of behavior, a moral
system.

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 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 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.