NOVEMBER 2017 | VOL.
MONTHLY NEWS
COMPUTER ETHICS
By Miza Syazwina
A new field has recently sparked a great deal of
attention from philosophers all over the world. With the
explosion of the Internet into the most widely used
information medium today, the need to study the correct
computer ethics has become imperative to our future as
computer users. As the technology underlying computers
continues to change, so to must our way of going about
ethically using computers to further our society. There
are many different areas where the study of computer
ethics could be considered applicable.
The use of computers in large corporations is just o-ne
sector of computer ethics that needs to be fully
understood. As computers are essential to the way big
business makes their yearly profit, they can also serve to
be enticing devices for employees touse as their own
personal hubs for entertaining themselves.
Many people have lost their jobs due to their
complete lack of ethical behaviour in the realm of
using their computer at work for strictly business
purposes. In large corporations, it becomes more
difficult to monitor individual usage, and it is
wasting upper-level management's time to have to
deal with a computer ethics issue.
There is also the matter of using computers for
criminal reasons. Due to the very nature of the
information that is transferred through computers,
they lend themselves to being targets for unsavory
characters to attempt to exploit. From implantable
viruses to the most advanced hacking software,
criminal behaviour in relation to the use of
computers is a burgeoning problem that has been,
and will continue to be, stringently addressed.
While the study of computer ethics is not necessarily
an exact science, it continues to develop and progress
as more information becomes available about the
technological power that computers can harness. As
the world continues to rely more and more o-n the
transmission of data between computer systems,
computer ethics will undoubtedly become more of a
focus for many of the world's most schooled
philosophers.
 NOVEMBER 2017 | VOL.1

ETHICAL ISSUES ON COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY

With the changing social landscape that naturally follows changes in technology comes a new wave of
ethical issues. These issues must be addressed and resolved for computers, technology and the Internet
to have a positive influence in society. Internet privacy, electronic communication and computer
crimes add a new layer of ethical issues that plague those who use computers and technology on a daily
basis. By identifying the main societal issues in computer usage, you can take a stand for electronic
ethics

INFORMATION AND
PRIVACY
The Internet is a veritable smorgasbord of
personal information. If you need someone's
phone number, you look it up. If you need to
learn more about a company, you visit the
website. If you want to find an old friend,
you use social networking. The sheer amount
of personal information make it easy to
breach the boundary between using the
Internet for learning and information and
using the Internet to invade another's
COMPUTER CRIME privacy. You can protect yourself by being
vague about yourself online and ensuring
The availability of information that can be your identity is ambiguous and nonspecific.
accessed with a computer paired with a lax
attitude toward security means credit card
numbers and identities are constantly at risk.
Entering your credit card on a seemingly
innocuous website may seem like an everyday
activity, but that site could be a clever scam
designed to fraud you out of your hard-earned
money. While the amount and extent of
computer crime is frightening, it's a reality and
therefore it's necessary for consumers to protect
themselves by purchasing from trusted retailers
or using third-party payment services to protect
their money.

COMMUNICATION ISSUES COPYRIGHT AND PRIVACY

Computers have completely altered the way
humans interact with each other. With the
invention of electronic mail, online messaging
and social networking sites, face-to-face
conversation seems to be a dying art. Because
the communication landscape has changed over
time, so have the challenges and ethics that
accompany proper communication, such as
discussing certain issues via email, exchanging
personal information without the proper
security and forming relationships online.
Certain items of media, such as public
domain books, movies and music, are
available for all to enjoy and even download.
Items of media which are copyrighted are not
in the public domain and downloading and
distributing them is illegal. Unfortunately,
online piracy is widespread and notoriously
difficult to prosecute, so it often goes without
consequence. The same could be said for
plagiarism, which is made easier to do and
harder to track with the number of resources
online.
 NOVEMBER 2017 | VOL.1

CODE OF ETHICS
The code of computer ethics, also called the Ten
Commandments, instructs users to not harass
other users, use computers to spy or use
computers to gain access to private information.
The ethics prevent the taking of intellectual
information without compensation and prevent
users from using computing resources without
compensation or authorization. The ethics also
mandate the use of machines in a manner
considerate and respectful of others. Examples
of computer ethics include not using a computer
to steal or to harm others, especially by
avoiding the spread of computer viruses and
shunning plagiarism of computer software.
Computer ethics also involve avoiding
unauthorized access to computer systems and
preserving the confidentiality and privacy of
data in computers.
WHY DO WE NEED A CODE OF
ETHICS?
A code of ethics is necessary because it allows
THE TEN COMMANDMENTS: individuals to know what is expected of them as
acceptable behaviour. It provides guidelines on
making decisions that are in line with the goals of
1. Thou shalt not use a computer to harm
the organization. Regardless of the size of
other people.
business, a code of ethics is a necessary tool for any
2. Thou shalt not interfere with other
business looking to succeed. The values and morals
peoples computer work.
incorporated into a code of ethics should be well
3. Thou shalt not snoop around in other
thought out to ensure that the desired results are
peoples computer files.
achieved. A successful code of ethics will translate
4. Thou shalt not use a computer to steal
into a positive reputation for the organization,
5. Thou shalt not use a computer to bear
which increases business for a company. A code of
false witness.
ethics improves the business's reputation, and it
6. Thou shalt not copy or use proprietary
holds the employees and management accountable.
software for which you have not paid
It is important to provide employees a guideline of
(without permission).
what the company considers right and wrong.
7. Thou shalt not use other peoples
Without a code of ethics, there can be
computer resources without
misunderstandings as to what is acceptable. If
authorization or proper compensation.
there are no standards in place, it can be very
8. Thou shalt not appropriate other peoples
difficult to hold employees responsible for
intellectual output.
behaviour that negatively impacts business. Every
9. Thou shalt think about the social
employee's decision can impact the business either
consequences of the program you are
positively or negatively. By implementing a code
writing or the system you are designing.
of ethics that reflects a company's views, many of
10. Thou shalt always use a computer in
the decisions that are made by employees will
ways that ensure consideration and
positively affect the business.
respect for your fellow humans.
 NOVEMBER 2017 | VOL.1

IMPORTANCE OF COMPUTER ETHICS

What are ethics? Well, ethics are the moral values that stop you from doing anything that is
not legal and that does not harm or damage anyone else's work, or interests. Ethics are
something that are embittered in us from childhood. Remember when the teacher said, "Do
not copy someone else's homework"? Or when the monitor asked to stand in the line. These
simple etiquette and ethics help the environment to be more safe, friendly and co-operative
for others around. Computer ethics are nothing but how we use our personal morals and ethics
while using the computer for various purposes. They consist of all the rules that you would
apply to not misuse any information that is not yours to use, or to access any data that is not
owned by you. With issues like cyber-crimes, plagiarism, hacking and password thefts, it has
become important to know the importance of computer ethics to be able to create a safe
computer-based environment.

Prevents Misuse of Personal Keeps you from being Unethical!

Information
Computers have made the world come closer, be it
personally or professionally! Most of us find it
more convenient to shop online rather than going
out. For this we are asked to give out our
personal information like name, date of birth
and most importantly, our 'credit card
information'! Ask yourself, if you know that
people don't follow computer ethics everywhere,
would you feel safe to give out all this
information? On the contrary, if you have read
their privacy policies and know that they abide
by the cyber laws and computer ethics, you know
for a fact that your personal information will not
be misused.
Prevents Theft of Intellectual
Property
What is intellectual property? Well, unlike
physical forms of properties like car or house,
intellectual property refers to the property
created by the mind! The internet consists of
various intellectual properties which includes
works of various researchers, writers, song artists
and so on. Without the presence of computer
ethics, the work created by the intellect of one
person can be easily copied and plagiarized by
someone else. Imagine how you would feel if your
poetry has been copied and publicized under
someone else's name? Now do you know what
following computer ethics and privacy policies is
important?
It's not that you need to follow computer ethics to
show others. However, by following these ethics,
you would know what you need to do to be a
responsible user and keep yourself from getting
into trouble by being unethical. Trouble? Well, yes,
there are various laws that can put you behind bars
if you are caught violating the privacy policies and
norms of individual websites. I remember reading
that a school had to pay almost $5 million as fine
for using pirated software, it was later that they
realized that getting a license would have been
much more economical.
Prevents Loss of Various Jobs in
the field of Software
Development
There are thousands of people globally that are
working in companies that develop computer
programs and software. However, if we find out a
way to get these software without having to pay the
price, most of us would prefer piracy over paying,
right? Have you ever wondered, how this can cost
the employees working in these companies their
job. The general mentality of most of the people
downloading software illegally is that these
companies are very rich and it really wouldn't
affect them even if it does, who cares? However, the
point to be kept in mind is, what if the one who
had to pay the price is someone close to you.
Imagine, there are thousands of people getting
involved in unethical downloads and distribution.
In fact, a report reveals that a significant number
of the people prefer never to pay for a software and
get involved in piracy!
 NOVEMBER 2017 | VOL.1

TYPES OF COMPUTER ETHICS

ETHICS OF USING COMPUTERS

BETWEEN THE PERSON AND

THE SAME, WE MUST ADHERE:

Self-esteem and not exposing them to hazards

for the user. Such as: not wasting time when
using the computer, and not look at the
usefulness or the taboo, and not see the's sins
of others or their privacy even if they are
available and accessible, and also no harm to
the body and give it a rest and focus on the
back, the eyes in particular. So we must plant
these ethics among our students and trainees
and staff in our schools and our schools and
workplaces because no officer of such acts only
person control for himself.

THE ETHICS OF USING

COMPUTERS BETWEEN THE

PERSON AND THE OTHER:

This type of ethics we can apply it to develop

some systems that protect people and users
can also keep some laws to protect devices
also but the main focus of the application of
these regulations and is personal scruples.
ETHICS BETWEEN THE USER
One of the most important examples of this
AND HARDWARE: type:

1. Respect for intellectual property

1. Don't use a computer abuse especially
2. Maintaining privacy and other
public as schools, universities and public
secrets and not published or find.
libraries.
3. Not to victimize others for their
2. To ensure the safety of the device, its
colour, their race, their religion or
contents either cracking or heavy load or
their social or prejudice the
cause damage to the hardware.
reputation or reprisal and
3. Maintain compliance with laws
victimisation.
designed to regulate the use of the
computer as maintaining user name and
password and not give it to others from
unauthorized use.
 NOVEMBER 2017 | VOL.1

REFERENCES
https://www.techopedia.com/definition/5499/computer-ethics

http://courses.cs.vt.edu/professionalism/WorldCodes/10.Commandments.html

http://www.encyclopedia.com/history/biographies/panama-history-biographies/computer-ethics

https://sites.google.com/site/computerethics96/main-points/examples-of-computer-ethics

https://www.buzzle.com/articles/importance-of-computer-ethics.html

https://computerethics101.weebly.com/types-of-computer-ethics.html