Cyberethics Cases

Questions: Case 1Case: Dalhousie Dentistry Program "Gentlemen's Club"Case 2Case: Will the Internet make us happier, smarter, healthier, fitter...better?Background Information:Case 3Case: "Avoid Ghetto" AppsCase 4Case: The Interview and the Sony HackCase 5Case: Celebrity Nude Photo LeakBackground information:Case 6Case: How Borderless Internet Architecture is Bringing Down RegimesCase 7Case: The Future of Books and BookstoresCase 8Case: Cyberbullying in Canada Answers: Case 1 Version 1 Case: Dalhousie Dentistry Program "Gentlemen's Club" Link: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/dalhousie-university-probes-misogynistic-student-gentlemen-s-club-1.2873918 Background The case is about the misogynistic student club at Dalhousie University. It came into light that the faculty of dentistry,at Dalhousie University had a FB group of male students in which people used to talk about bad and spoiled things about female students. The language used in the FB group was unacceptable and disturbing. Their conversations also included jokes about using chloroform on women. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question: Do students have any moral rights to tall filthy about others even in closed FB groups? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Utilitarianism: It is a theory in normative ethics holding that the proper course of action is the one that maximizes utility. In this principle the moral worth of any action is determined by its consequences only. The consequences were not good in this case and therefore the action could not be called as moral. Therefore it can be said that students does not have any moral rights to talk bad about other students even in closed FB groups. Version 2 Case: Dalhousie Dentistry Program "Gentlemen's Club" Link: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/dalhousie-university-probes-misogynistic-student-gentlemen-s-club-1.2873918 Background The case is about the misogynistic student club at Dalhousie University. It came into light that the faculty of dentistry,at Dalhousie University had a FB group of male students in which people used to talk about bad and spoiled things about female students. The language used in the FB group was unacceptable and disturbing. Their conversations also included jokes about using chloroform on women. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Does Facebook destroying the human relationships between men and women? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Egoism: It is a theory, which advocates that ones self is, or should be, the motivation and the goal of ones own action. It means that any individual (male or female) should be free to do whatever he or she want is he or she wants that thing to be done. The private groups of FB provides a platform wherein people can write whatever they want to write and this could be a source of tension between people in the group and people outside the group. In this case, it was a source of tension between male students and female students. Case 2 Version 1 Case: Will the Internet make us happier, smarter, healthier, fitter...better? Link: https://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/how-facebook-makes-us-unhappy Background The case raises and important question about the use of Internet, social media, Face book and Twitter. There are different views about the way FB is affecting people. Some researchers believe that FB makes people jealous and sad. Some researchers believe that FB could also be a source of happiness. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Does FB make people sad? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Human Flourishing: In positive psychology,flourishingis to live within an optimal range of humanfunctioning, one that connotes goodness, growth, and resilience. This advocates of this principle argues that people in a society should live with happiness and people should flourish. The acts of the people should be to make everyone happy around them. Face Book shall be treated only as a medium to spread happiness as the goal should be to spread happiness and not sadness. Version 2 Case: Will the Internet make us happier, smarter, healthier, fitter...better? Link: https://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/how-facebook-makes-us-unhappy Background The case raises and important question about the use of Internet, social media, Face book and Twitter. There are different views about the way FB is affecting people. Some researchers believe that FB makes people jealous and sad. Some researchers believe that FB could also be a source of happiness. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Does FB create a felling of competitiveness (bad and destroying felling) and jealously among society members To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Iron cage: According to Weber, modernity is characterized by the increasing role of calculation and control in social life, a trend leading to what he called the iron cage of bureaucracy. Face book could also be treated as a modernistic tool that is complicating the social life of individuals. The penetration of Face Book is like an iron cage from where it is very difficult to get out. Case 3 Version 1 Case: Avoid Ghetto apps Link: https://www.npr.org/2012/01/25/145337346/this-app-was-made-for-walking-but-is-it-racist?ft=1f=1001 Background Microsoft launched a new application with specific GPS features. The new feature is meant to help pedestrians avoid, bad weather, unsafe neighborhoods and difficult terrain by taking information from weather reports, maps, crime statistics and demographics. A set of directions is created based on the above inputs. This takes "the user through neighborhoods with violent crime statistics below a certain threshold." This application is under the criticism of being a racist application. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Should corporations invest on technology that creates social divide? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Technological utopianism: The advocates of technology believe that technology would help to bring society at a state of utopia where everything would be perfect. Technology plays a critical role in the development of society and therefore it is important that people in the society should also accept technology with open heart. This theory would suggest that the advocates of technology should not consider this application as racist. Version 2 Case: Avoid Ghetto apps Link: https://www.npr.org/2012/01/25/145337346/this-app-was-made-for-walking-but-is-it-racist?ft=1f=1001 Background Microsoft launched a new application with specific GPS features. The new feature is meant to help pedestrians avoid, bad weather, unsafe neighborhoods and difficult terrain by taking information from weather reports, maps, crime statistics and demographics. A set of directions is created based on the above inputs. This takes "the user through neighborhoods with violent crime statistics below a certain threshold." This application is under the criticism of being a racist application. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Should corporations ignore the societal pressure while developing innovative products? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Utilitarism: The advocates of this theory believe that people should perform those actions that provide maximum utility to them. In this case, the developers would be happy if they see their application as a success in the market. At the same time, the application should not harm the sentiments of people. Hence the proper course of action for Microsoft or developers can be defined only when the company understands the perception of its application among the users. Therefore the future course of actions should be based on this perception. Case 4 Version 1 Case: The Interview and the Sony Hack Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony_Pictures_Entertainment_hack Background In November 2014, some hackers hack into the data of Sony Pictures and leak the data about the employees of Sony. The leaked data included the personal information of employees, information about their friends and family, personal mail exchanges and other information. Based on the investigation it was surfaced that hackers could have been from North Korea and this hack was in demand to stop the release of he filmThe Interview, a comedy about a plot to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Should people hack into the personal information of others? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Technological utopianism: The role of technology should be to ensure that the life of people could be easy. The principle of technological utopianism states that the society should reach a perfect stage of utoipa with technology. Therefore the actions of the people (hackers) should not be justified in this case for any cause. Hence, it can be said that people have no moral right to hack into the personal stuff of other people. Version 2 Case: The Interview and the Sony Hack Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony_Pictures_Entertainment_hack Background In November 2014, some hackers hack into the data of Sony Pictures and leak the data about the employees of Sony. The leaked data included the personal information of employees, information about their friends and family, personal mail exchanges and other information. Based on the investigation it was surfaced that hackers could have been from North Korea and this hack was in demand to stop the release of he filmThe Interview, a comedy about a plot to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Can end (stop of movie release) justify the means (hacking)? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Categorical imperative This theory of philosophy could be used to evaluate the motives of action. In this case the motives of hackers was to ensure that that movie should not be released. However this motive does not justify their actions. Therefore the act of hackers to hack into the Sony system was wrong on their part. Reference Xiao-nian, L. I. U. (2010). Technology s Nature of Interaction and Social Governence.Science Economy Society,1, 023. Case 5 Version 1 Case: Celebrity Nude Photo Leak Link: https://globalnews.ca/news/1537908/investigators-probe-leak-of-100s-of-celebrity-nude-photos/ Background It was reported that the nude photographs of 100 celebrities was released. It appears that it was a computer intrusion. The photos of famous females nude and, in some cases, in sexual situations, were posted to the 4chan image sharing forum and quickly spread to other websites. Some of the celebrities denied that it was there photographs. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Should people post the private information of other on Internet? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Technological utopianism: In this era, technology has an important role to play in the personal life of people. However this principle suggest that the role of technology should be positive in nature. The technological utopia can be achieved only when technology could be used in constructive way and not destructive way. Therefore people should not perform the act of publishing the personal information of other people. Version 2 Case: Celebrity Nude Photo Leak Link: https://globalnews.ca/news/1537908/investigators-probe-leak-of-100s-of-celebrity-nude-photos/ Background It was reported that the nude photographs of 100 celebrities was released. It appears that it was a computer intrusion. The photos of famous females nude and, in some cases, in sexual situations, were posted to the 4chan image sharing forum and quickly spread to other websites. Some of the celebrities denied that it was there photographs. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Should people watch the private information of other on Internet? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Human flourishing: The advocates of this principle would ensure that society at large should focus on the development of human beings. However a section of people should not be flourished on the expenses of other people. The people who put these nude photographs on Internet does not behave in moral sense and at the same time people who watches these photographs for leisure and fun would also not be doing the moral thing. References Nosek, B. A., Spies, J. R., Motyl, M. (2012). Scientific utopia II. Restructuring incentives and practices to promote truth over publishability.Perspectives on Psychological Science,7(6), 615-631. Case 6 Version 1 Case: How Borderless Internet Architecture is Bringing Down Regimes Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/19/books/review/how-an-egyptian-revolution-began-on-facebook.html?pagewanted=all_r=0 Background The article is about the social media revolutions. The article presented the case of assassination of a 29-year-old marketing employee of Google by Egypt police. An angry Egyptian Ghonim created a Face book page and started the revolution against the government. He was able to get a very large support from domestic and international audience. Eventually, government was forced to resign due to this revolution. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Should killing be justified, even by Police? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Human flourishing: This theory states that the goal of every individual in the society should be to create harmony in the society. In this case, it appears that Police were under political pressure to execute the Google employee. This principle of human flourishing would not justify any such act even by Policy or government. Version 2 Case: How Borderless Internet Architecture is Bringing Down Regimes Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/19/books/review/how-an-egyptian-revolution-began-on-facebook.html?pagewanted=all_r=0 Background The article is about the social media revolutions. The article presented the case of assassination of a 29-year-old marketing employee of Google by Egypt police. An angry Egyptian Ghonim created a Face book page and started the revolution against the government. He was able to get a very large support from domestic and international audience. Eventually, government was forced to resign due to this revolution. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Should killing be justified, even by Police? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Ethical egosim: The term egoism has several connotations attached to it. The principle of ethical egoism is defined as the common sense ego. It states that people should behave with common sense and any commonsense or any ethical guideline cannot allow the brutal killing. It is important that Police and people in policies should also show high ethical standards and should have ethical egoism. Case 7 Version 1 Case: The Future of Books and Bookstores Link: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/toronto-loses-6-bookstores-in-6-weeks-1.2595788 Background The article is about the decline the retail market of bookstores. The article presented that the online shopping is eating away the market of retail bookstores. In a window of 6 weeks, 6 bookstores were forced to shut down. These bookstores were not able to keep up with dying demands. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Should profitability be the reason to be in the business? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Iron Cage: The penetration of online retailing and online selling should be treated as an iron cage. There is lot of benefits of online selling but this form of business is eating away the profitability of retailers. Form a business sense it can be said that profitability is the driver to remain in the business. It appears that it is difficult for people to come out of this iron cage. References Abrahamson, E. (2011). The iron cage: Ugly, uncool, and unfashionable.Organization Studies,32(5), 615-629. Version 2 Case: The Future of Books and Bookstores Link: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/toronto-loses-6-bookstores-in-6-weeks-1.2595788 Background The article is about the decline the retail market of bookstores. The article presented that the online shopping is eating away the market of retail bookstores. In a window of 6 weeks, 6 bookstores were forced to shut down. These bookstores were not able to keep up with dying demands. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Would rational action would be to shut down the book stores? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Rational egoism: This theory suggests that while making the choice, people should take the rational decisions. It means that people should weigh the pros and cons of their actions and then take the decision. In this case, the approach of rational egoism would suggest that businesses should discontinue the business of bookstore if it resulting into loses for the company. References Schroth, H. A. (2008). Helping you is helping me: Improving students ethical behaviors in a negotiation by appealing to ethical egoism and the reputation effect.Negotiation and Conflict Management Research,1(4), 389-407. Case 8 Version 1 Case: Cyberbullying in Canada Link: https://news.nationalpost.com/2013/04/09/the-justice-system-failed-her-nova-scotia-teenager-commits-suicide-after-being-raped-bullied-mother/ Background The article is about a family of a rape victim. The mother of the rape victim committed a suicide. Before committing the suicide, mother of the victim said that 4 boys raped her daughter. This incident happened 18 months ago. The boys who performed rape also took the picture of victim and spread it in social media. The boys declared that girl as slut in the social median community of school. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Should people believe to what is shown to them in social media? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Iron Cage: One of the objectives of technology is to spread the information. Today, Internet is the fastest way to spread information. However, the principles of iron cage would argue that social media has certain drawbacks also. Therefore it is important that people should not believe on everything that is being shared on social media pages. Version 1 Case: Cyberbullying in Canada Link: https://news.nationalpost.com/2013/04/09/the-justice-system-failed-her-nova-scotia-teenager-commits-suicide-after-being-raped-bullied-mother/ Background The article is about a family of a rape victim. The mother of the rape victim committed a suicide. Before committing the suicide, mother of the victim said that 4 boys raped her daughter. This incident happened 18 months ago. The boys who performed rape also took the picture of victim and spread it in social media. The boys declared that girl as slut in the social median community of school. Moral Question The case raises the following moral question Should people put the debatable content on social media platforms? To answer this question, I would apply following moral principle: Ethical egosim: The advocates of this theory suggest that people should show high ethical standards while dealing with other people. It is important that people should not compromise on their ethical values in any situation. Ethical values of people should remain with people even in their tough times. This theory would suggest that people should not indulge in any unethical practice and should not interfere in the private life of other people. References Williams, C. R., Arrigo, B. A. (2011).Ethics, crime, and criminal justice. Pearson Higher Ed.