Chapter 3 – Networking

Spam / Junk:

Spam is Unsolicited, bulk email. It is profitable and so people do it. It is made with the intent to be
harmful, unlike Junk mail, which although is unwanted, is just commercial offers.
Harmful parties get your email and use bots to message millions of users.
Perfect example of Socio Technical issues that arise from the adoption of new tech.
In the case of JUNK Spam, Kantian, Act Utilitarian and Social Contract Theory don’t see it as wrong.
However Rule Utilitarian and Virtue Ethics see it as wrong.

Internet Interactions:

The WWW is a networked hypertext system which is decentralized and gives a unique address to
every web object.

Text Messaging:

Online Messaging is Transforming lives.

Censorship:

The suppression and regulation of public access to material considered offensive or harmful.
Divided into:
1. Government monopolization
2. Prepublication review
3. Licensing and registration
Self-Censorship is the most common form of Censorship where groups decide to not publish
information.
It poses challenges because the Internet is way more open and available than traditional methods of
media, and allows a vector of communication that is unparalleled.
Kantianism and Mill’s ethical ideals both oppose censorship. However Mill’s principle of harm argues
that intervention is only justified when it is to prevent harm to others (accessing terrorist websites)
and not when it is for the good of an individual (accessing online pornography).

Freedom of Expression:

1st Amendment to U.S. Constitution defends it.

Freedom of expression is NOT an absolute right, it is more limited and on case-to-case basis with some
restrictions, especially culturally.
Children and Content Web Filters:

A Web filter is any Software that prevents display of certain Web pages by either maintaining a site
“black list” or checking the content for questionable words / phrases.
Child Internet Protection Act stated that Libraries receiving federal networking funds must filter pages
containing obscenity or child pornography.
Kantian evaluation sees CIPA as wrong. Act utilitarian depends on how you weigh the benefits to the
harms. Social Contract views it as wrong.
Sexting is sending or receiving sexually charged messages.

Breaking Trust:

Identity Theft is using another person’s electronic identity. Causes credit card fraud usually.
Often done by using Phishing; mass sending emails pretending to be someone you are not to get info
from a naïve victim.
Chat Room Predators are sexual predators and pedophiles who meet children through online chat
rooms, pretend to be children of their age, lure them into revealing information about themselves in
hopes of convincing them to have sex with them or send nudes. (It is god damn disgusting and I wish
violent death on anyone who does this). This destroys children mentally and causes life lasting trauma
and trust issues.
Spreading false information by pretending that you are someone of higher authority / a known name
in the field, or simply tricking the Search Engine into believing your data is more accurate than others.
Kills credibility of a lot of online sources and causes people to doubt facts.
Cyberbullying is using the Internet to inflict psychological harm on a person. Often leads to long lasting
trauma. Destroys trust.

Internet Addiction:

The obsessive draining use of the Internet that causes long term mental and bodily harm.
People argue it is not Addictive, it is compulsive.
Some contributing factors are Peer groups, Stress, lack of a social life and escapism.
Ethically an Enlightenment View sees it as a personal choice that shouldn’t be interfered with.
However Jeffrey Reiman sees it as society’s responsibility to help an addict because the society’s
failure to function as it should that pushed the person into that extreme.