Personal, Legal, Ethical, and Organizational Issues

Module 4
Personal, Legal, Ethical,

and Organizational Issues
Bidgoli, MIS, 10 th Edition. © 2021 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or
or posted
posted to atopublicly
a publicly accessible
accessible website,
website, in whole
in whole or part.
or in in part.
Learning Objectives (1 of 2)
• Discuss information privacy and methods for improving the privacy of information
• Explain the general data protection regulation (GDPR)
• Explain the privacy issues of e-mail and data collection in a business setting
• Examine ethical issues and censorship of information technology
Bidgoli, MIS, 10th Edition. © 2021 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or
posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Learning Objectives (2 of 2)
• Discuss the principles of intellectual property and issues related to the infringement of
intellectual property
• Examine the impact of information technology on society: the digital divide, telecommuting,
and health issues
• Describe green computing and the ways it can improve the quality of the environment
Privacy Issues (1 of 7)
• Employers search social networking sites for background information on applicants

• Monitoring systems are adopted by employers to check employee performance
• Healthcare organizations, financial institutions, legal firms, and online-ordering firms gather
personal data and enter it in databases
• Information about every aspect of people’s lives is stored on various databases

• Many practices of government agencies, credit agencies, and marketing companies
using databases would represent an invasion of privacy
• Several federal laws regulate the collection and use of information on people and
corporations
• Narrow in scope and contain loopholes
• Important concepts regarding the Web and network privacy

• Acceptable use policy
• Set of rules specifying legal and ethical use of a system and consequences of
noncompliance
• Accountability
• Issues involving both the user’s and the organization’s responsibilities and liabilities
• Nonrepudiation
• Method for binding all the parties to a contract
• Guidelines to minimize invasion of privacy

• Conduct business only with Web sites with privacy policies that are easy to find, read,
and understand
• Limit access to personal information to those who have authorization
• Ensure data’s reliability and take precautions to prevent misuse of the data
• Make sure data collection has a stated purpose
• Discard personal data when no longer needed for stated purpose
• Guidelines to minimize invasion of privacy (continued)

• Prevent personal information from being disclosed without consent or used for
undisclosed purposes
• Use verification procedures to ensure data accuracy
• Ensure records kept on an individual are accurate and up to date
• Users should be able to review and correct their records
• Guidelines to minimize invasion of privacy (continued)

• Record-keeping systems that store personal data should not be kept a secret
• Take all necessary measures to prevent unauthorized access to data and misuse of data
• Federal data protection laws

• Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
• Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act (FACTA)
• Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
(1 of 3)
• Covers a series of laws in order to protect European Union (EU) citizens’ personal data
• Genetic data
• Racial or ethnic origin
• Religious beliefs
• Goal is more consistent protection of consumer and personal data across EU nations
• Applies to each member state of the European Union
(2 of 3)
• Key components:
• User consent
• Data must be anonymized
• Notification of data breaches
• Safe transfer of data across borders
• At certain companies, appointment of a GDPR compliance officer
(3 of 3)
• Business benefits:
• Consumer confidence
• Better data security
• Reduced maintenance by retiring noncompliant software
• Better alignment with evolving technology
• Better decision making from effective use of customer information
E-mail
• Spam: unsolicited “junk” e-mail sent for advertising purposes

• Sent in bulk using automated mailing software
• Spammers sell their address lists
• Ease of access
• Individuals should assume that others have access to their messages
• Any e-mails sent on company-owned computers are the property of an organization
• Company has right to access
Data Collection on the Web (1 of 3)
• Number of online shoppers is increasing rapidly because of convenience, array of choices,

and lower prices
• But some avoid online purchases because of concerns about hackers
• Concern that personal information will be sold to telemarketing firms
• Information users provide on the Web can be combined with other information and
technologies to produce new information
• Cookies: small text files with unique ID tags that are embedded in a Web browser and
saved on the user’s hard drive
• Help Web sites customize pages for users
• Considered an invasion of privacy when users’ information is used without prior
consent
• Installing a cookie manager helps users disable cookies
• Log files record a user’s actions on a Web site

• Generated by Web server software
• Can help determine cases of identity misrepresentation on Web sites
• Data collected on the Web must be used and interpreted with caution
Ethical Issues of Information Technologies
• Information technology offers opportunities for unethical behavior because of the ease of
collecting and disseminating information
• Increase in cybercrime, cyberfraud, identity theft, and intellectual property theft
• Organizations can reduce unethical behavior of employees by developing and enforcing
codes of ethics
Censorship (1 of 2)
• Two types of information available on the Web:

• Public information is posted by an organization or public agency
• Censored for public policy reasons
• Censored if the content is deemed offensive to a political, religious, or cultural group
• Private information is posted by a person
• Uncensored because of constitutional freedom of expression
Censorship (2 of 2)
• Restricting access to the Web

• Countries such as China, Myanmar (Burma), and Singapore restrict or forbid their
citizens’ access to the Web
• Internet neutrality: Internet service providers (ISPs) and government agencies
should treat all data on the Internet equally
• Parents use programs such as CyberPatrol, CYBERSitter, Net Nanny, and SafeSurf to
prevent children’s access to Web sites
Intellectual Property (1 of 5)
• Legal umbrella covering protections that involve copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, and
patents developed by people or businesses
• Categories of intellectual property

• Industrial property: inventions, trademarks, logos, and industrial designs
• Copyrighted material: literary and artistic works
• Online materials such as Web pages, HTML code, and computer graphics
• Fair Use Doctrine: exception to the copyright law that allows the use of copyrighted
material for certain purposes
• Intellectual property protections

• Trademark: protects product names and identifying marks (e.g., logos)
• Patent: protects new processes
• Advantages of patents to organizations
▶ Generates revenue by licensing the patent
▶ Attracts funding for research and development
▶ Keeps competitors from entering certain market segments
• 1980 revisions to the Copyright Act of 1976 include computer programs

• Both people and organizations can be held liable for unauthorized duplication and use of
copyrighted programs
• Laws covering legal issues related to information technologies in the U.S.
• Telecommunications Act of 1996
• Communications Decency Act (CDA)
• Laws against spamming
• Cybersquatting
• Registering, selling, or using a domain name to profit from someone else’s trademark
• Typosquatting
• Relies on typographical errors made by Web users when typing a Web site address into
a Web browser
• Variation of cybersquatting
• Also called URL hijacking
Social Divisions and the Digital Divide
• Digital divide: created between the information rich and the information poor by information
technology and the Internet
• Computers still are not affordable for many people
• Increasing funding for computers at schools and public places helps offset the divide
• The speed of the Internet connection also plays a role
The Impact of Information Technology in the
Workplace (1 of 2)
• Increased consumers’ purchasing power
• Results in a stronger economy by reducing production costs
• Information technologies have a direct effect on the nature of jobs
• Telecommuting enables people to perform their jobs from home
• Organizations can use the best human resources in a large geographical region
The Impact of Information Technology in the
Workplace (2 of 2)
• Job deskilling: occurs when skilled labor is eliminated by high technology
• Virtual organizations: networks of independent companies, suppliers, customers, and
manufacturers connected via information technologies
• Share skills and cost
• Have access to each other’s markets
Table 4.1 Telecommuting (1 of 2)
Potential Benefits
Can care for small children or elderly parents and spend more time with family
Have fewer restrictions on clothing for work, thereby saving the expense of work wear
No commute, so distance and time factors are reduced as well as the effects of car emissions on
air quality
Able to work in more pleasant surroundings
Increased productivity
Decreased neighborhood crime because of more people being home during the day
Easier work environment for employees with disabilities
Reduced costs for office space and utilities
Reduced employee turnover and absenteeism
Able to find and hire people with special skills, regardless of where they are located
Fewer interruptions from coworkers
Table 4.1 Telecommuting (2 of 2)
Potential Drawbacks
Can become a workaholic (no hard boundaries between “at work” and “at home”)
No regulated work routine
Less interaction with coworkers
No separation between work and home life
Potential legal issues about workers’ injuries
Family interruptions and household distractions
Lack of necessary supplies or equipment
Could create a two-tiered workforce—telecommuters and on-site workers—
that affects promotions and raises
Information Technology and Health Issues (1 of 3)
• Increasing popularity of touchscreens

• May result in stress-related injuries of the users’ hands, arms, back, and eyes
• Text neck: describes neck pain and damage caused from looking down at handheld
devices.
• Health problems related to computer equipment
• Vision problems
• Musculoskeletal problems
• Skin problems
• Reproductive problems
• Stress-related problems
• Health/emotional well-being of children

• Parents may spend too much time on smartphones
• Children do not receive time or attention from parents
• Increase in accidents by young children when parents use gadgets
• Five types of Internet addiction:
• Cybersexual
• Web compulsions (gambling, shopping, stock trading)
• Cyber-relationships (social media, dating, virtual communication)
• Gaming
• Information seeking
• Distracted walking while using a smartphone

• Injuring others
• Tripping, sprains, fractures, bruises, concussions, death
• Selfie deaths while taking pictures in dangerous situations
• Recommendations for overcoming Internet and smartphone addiction:
• Admit that you have a problem
• Limit your usage; schedule usage
• Change patterns by not using mobile devices
• Socialize more
• Find interests that do not involve mobile devices
• Turn off devices at certain times; keep them inaccessible
• Ask for professional help
Green Computing (1 of 3)
• Promotes a sustainable environment and consumes the least amount of energy

• Involves design, manufacture, use, and disposal of computers, servers, and computing
devices with minimal impact on the environment
• Requires cooperation of both private and public sectors
• Implementation approaches:
• Green design (creating energy-efficient devices)
• Green manufacturing (minimizing waste and energy use)
• Green use (minimizing electricity consumption of devices)
• Green disposal (repurposing, recycling)
• Ways to achieve green computing

• Design products that last longer and are modular in design
• Parts can be upgraded without replacing the entire system
• Design search engines and computing routines that are faster and consume less energy
• Replace underutilized small servers with one large server using a virtualization technique
• Use computing devices that consume less energy and are biodegradable
• Ways to achieve green computing (continued)

• Allow certain employees to work from their homes
• Conduct meetings over computer networks to reduce business travel
• Use cloud computing services
• Turn off idle PCs
• Recycle computer-related materials
• Encourage carpooling or nonmotorized and public transportation
Summary (1 of 3)
• Employers search social networking sites, such as Facebook or Instagram, to find

background information on applicants
• Spamming presents serious privacy issues
• Two types of information available on the Web are public and private
• General data protection regulation (GDPR) protects EU citizens’ personal data
• Privacy issues of e-mail and data collection in business settings
Summary (2 of 3)
• Censorship of information and Internet access

• Many associations promote the ethically responsible use of information systems and
technologies
• Intellectual property protections involve copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, and patents
• Information technology has created many new jobs
• Green computing is one of the methods for combating global warming
Summary (3 of 3)
• Information technology and the Internet have created a

digital divide between the information rich and the information poor
• A common health issue is repetitive typing with thumbs: smartphone thumb

• Green computing involves the design, manufacture, use, and disposal of computing devices
with minimal impact on the environment

Personal, Legal, Ethical, and Organizational Issues

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Module 4

Personal, Legal, Ethical,

• Employers search social networking sites for background information on applicants

• Information about every aspect of people’s lives is stored on various databases

• Important concepts regarding the Web and network privacy

• Guidelines to minimize invasion of privacy

• Guidelines to minimize invasion of privacy (continued)

• Guidelines to minimize invasion of privacy (continued)

• Federal data protection laws

• Spam: unsolicited “junk” e-mail sent for advertising purposes

• Number of online shoppers is increasing rapidly because of convenience, array of choices,

• Log files record a user’s actions on a Web site

• Two types of information available on the Web:

• Restricting access to the Web

• Categories of intellectual property

• Intellectual property protections

▶ Attracts funding for research and development

▶ Keeps competitors from entering certain market segments

• 1980 revisions to the Copyright Act of 1976 include computer programs

• Increasing popularity of touchscreens

• Health/emotional well-being of children

• Distracted walking while using a smartphone

• Promotes a sustainable environment and consumes the least amount of energy

• Ways to achieve green computing

• Ways to achieve green computing (continued)

• Employers search social networking sites, such as Facebook or Instagram, to find

• Censorship of information and Internet access

• Information technology and the Internet have created a

• A common health issue is repetitive typing with thumbs: smartphone thumb

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