...an objective manner with the aim of covering rise of technology, with a specific focus on the digital divide. Indeed, the digital divide refers to the difference or gap between the people who have access to technology and those who lack access to technology. Clearly, computer technology has brought about significant ethical and social effects among people from all dimensions. The significance of the digital divide can be witnessed at school and work. The evidence of a digital divide can be seen in terms of the differences in access to computer technology. Different obstacles that limit the access to computer technology for some individuals have caused the divide. Access to computer technology is limited by the differences in geographical areas. From the geographical perspective, statistics indicate that individuals living in suburban areas have a higher access to computer technology both online and computer access as compared to rural and central city residents (Kizza, 2002). Income levels also determine the access to computer technology since computer gadgets or devices are monetized thus individuals have to purchase them and this poses a challenge to people who experience financial constraints. Other -issues include ethnicity where statistics indicate that white non-Hispanic individuals have a higher access to computer technology as compared to other individuals. Age and education also determine the access to computer technology. I agree with Kizza (2002), The digital divide...
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...given rise to many ethical as well as social reactions from the public opinion, non-governmental organization, and the media. This paper aims at providing some insights into this dilemmas, ethical concerns, and the tradeoffs which have been expressed concerning biotechnology over the last decade. It will focus on a few major objects from different sectors that have raised the general attention. A large part of the public opinion agrees and is optimistic about the ability of biotechnology to help and change the quality of life. However, there are visible differences that have been pointed out by global support that aims at moderating the biotechnology use. The Reasoning of Opposing Perspective on Ethical Issues within the Field of Biomedicine The regulation and development of biotechnology has triggered many discussions from various academic fields like the law, economics, politics, and even the history. Specifically, however, the science of genetic engineering of plants, animals, human beings, and all living cells has brought about ethical concerns and various issues to the forefront. Technology has made possible many advancements in biomedicine such as the cloning of the sheep- Dolly, the genetically engineered tomatoes, and the cloning of the human embryo. All these advancements have seen different reactions all in the name of ethics. The classical division existing between the society and science doesn’t seem to revolve when biotechnology is viewed through an ethical lens...
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...Ethical Dilemma in the Use of Information Technology * The use and growth explosion of today’s information on technology has been updated and aided with the emerging and development of computer technologies. There is so many networks out there today such as Google .and have allowed many exchanges of information but with these exchanges it has also come with new challenges. Rights and responsibilities in the way information is available to sources and with these issues arising this has caused some concerns and have given some rise to some ethical dilemmas. Ethical dilemmas greatly affect businesses and especially small businesses that are just starting out or small businesses that may not have backing capital or firms to advise on how to handle an ethical issue or expertise to deal with ethical dilemmas in the utilization of technologies. Today’s technology has taken such a huge leap in the last few years that it can drastically affect companies that are small or large in size. * In today’s world of technology there is a tremendous amount of computer crimes and they are very illegal .A lot of the activities being performed by using a computer and they include theft, financial fraud, embezzlement, online harassment, virus infection and sabotage. Computer crimes affect all businesses large and small that rely on the Internet to operate. A research report in 2000 by the FBI showed that out of all the business respondents, 85 percent had been victims of computer crime....
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...ethics is set of moral principles that regulate the use of computers. Some common issues of computer ethics include intellectual property rights (such as copyrighted electronic content), privacy concerns, and how computers affect society. For example, while it is easy to duplicate copyrighted electronic (or digital) content, computer ethics would suggest that it is wrong to do so without the author's approval. And while it may be possible to access someone's personal information on a computer system, computer ethics would advise that such an action is unethical. As technology advances, computers continue to have a greater impact on society. Therefore, computer ethics promotes the discussion of how much influence computers should have in areas such as artificial intelligence and human communication. As the world of computers evolves, computer ethics continues to create ethical standards that address new issues raised by new technologies. Computer Ethics is a part of practical philosophy which deals with how computing professionals should make decisions regarding professional and social conduct.[1] Margaret Anne Pierce, a professor in the Department of Mathematics and Computers at Georgia Southern University has categorized the ethical decisions related to computer technology and usage into 3 primary influences: * 1. The individual's own personal code. * 2. Any informal code of ethical conduct that exists in the work place. * 3. Exposure to formal codes of ethics...
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...Table of Contents Ethical and Social Issues In Information System 1 Chapter one 3 Introduction to the Study 3 Context of the Problem 4 Statement of the Problem 5 Research Questions 6 Introduction 6 Research Question 6 Research Question 7 Research Question 7 Significance of the Study 8 Research Design and Methodology 9 Organization of the study 9 Literature Review 10 Introduction 10 References 14 Chapter one Introduction to the Study Ethical and social issues in information system is a combination of the benefits and disadvantages of using computer and computer related devices, social networks versus our ethics, morals and beliefs. The importance and reliability of computer in our day to day running of human life cannot be over emphasized. Social networking platforms may allow organizations to improve communication and productivity by disseminating information among different groups of employees in a more efficient manner, resulting in increased productivity. While it is not meant to be all-inclusive, there are a lot of problems faced by its usage in younger generations, businesses use, and the even medical field. The social media comes with risks as it opens up the possibility for hackers to commit fraud, launch spam and virus attacks, and also increases the risk...
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...Information Technology Ethics Issues In the past thirty years technology has changed our lives significantly. It changed the way we communicate, the way we work, the way we interact with each other, to how we fight wars. With that being said, it has raised controversy and initiated intense debates that are often differentiated or entangled in scientific uncertainties or dishonest demagoguery. Law and ethics are struggling to keep pace with technology. For example, employers are forbidden and can face legal action if the ask interviewers about their, religion, political affiliation, or sexual preference. Nevertheless, they are able to turn to the internet like google or Facebook to determine if a candidate meets the job criteria by their beliefs, looks, or habits. It is against the law for lenders to discriminate a person based off their race, gender, and sexuality. However, they can deny a person a loan based on their Facebook friends that have a history of poor credit history or if their Facebook bios don’t match other websites like LinkedIn for example. Since laws have not kept up with modern day technology it causes regulatory gaps. As technology rapidly progresses the gaps seem to be getting bigger and bigger with time. Employment is not the only place where these regulatory gaps are happening. They are happening wherever technology exist. Technology has evolved so much in the last thirty years it’s nearly impossible to keep up causing our laws and ethical practices...
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...Technology has made many progress and has influence numerous inventions and has improved the quality of life. However, the one technology that has continued to affect the world is the computer and the internet. The development of these technologies has made information from all over the world easily accessible with just the click of a button. The development of information technology as influence new and creative developments through the storing and sharing of data. Today, information technology has even impacted science. Through the use of information technology, data collected by scientists across the country and even the globe can be stored and accessed for further research by other scientists. New technologies have been developed that aid...
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...Advances in Information Technology Create Ethical Issues that Drive Congressional Acts Ethics refers to what is morally good or bad, the division of right and wrong. The increase in ethical issues rises as information technology advances. What is unethical is not necessarily illegal. Therefore, congress is forced to set guidelines protecting consumer’s privacy, accuracy of information, the ownership and value of such information and who has access to it. The Electronic Funds Transfer Act of 1978 and the Health Information Portability and Protection Act of 2006 are just two examples of these types of acts. Information technology advances in order to keep up with the demands of the modern world. One such way, is the availability to access money from automated tellers and point of sale terminals. Congress implemented the Electronic Funds Transfer Act in 1978 to establish the basic rights, liabilities and responsibilities of consumers who use electronic funds services and financial institutions who offer those services. (FDIC, 2006). This law protects an individual consumer’s privacy by ensuring the financial institution protects the digital data it is storing and that it does not disseminate that information to the wrong individual. The financial institution must ensure it receives and authentic information from the consumer and accurately transfer the information into the computer system. The ETA also identifies error resolution and limits liability for any unauthorized...
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...the impact of information technology and artificial intelligence on the organization, privacy and control, research and instructional practices and ethics. Evolution of information technology has affected all these practices, and has helped them in improving their performance in some way. Information technology has opened a new era of information for today's organization (it might be business, non-profit, educational, research etc.) and has enabled it to gather and communicate information and thus function in a more effective way. On the other hand decision-making capability of the computers has changed the pattern of authority and responsibility with in the organization. Although information technology has bombarded the organization with all kind of information, but it has failed to take into account the limited capability of the society to absorb and use all the available information. In order to make information technology more effective, it must have the capability of providing the organization with relevant information and should be able to realize the needs of the users instead of procedures. Along with providing information, information technology has given rise to various technological problems, like establishing rules to use the available information and protecting it to be accesses by undesirable people. Another thing that the organization needs to be aware about, is the quality of information in order to make quality decisions. Information technology and artificial...
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...Introduction Information is a valuable corporate asset and important to our business. With regard to the situation that Brawner offers me a large sum of money for the email addresses and phone numbers of all my customers, what should I do? This essay aims to provide my response and dig out the root reasons of my business decision-making from two aspects of information ethics and information security. Information Ethics With the rapid development of information technology nowadays, people pay more attention to ethics and security. In recent years, many increasingly frequent corporate scandals have shed new light on the meaning of ethics and security. When the behavior of a few individuals can destroy billion-dollar organizations, the value of ethics and security should be evident. As mentioned in the case, Brawner would offer me a large amount of money in order to purchase my customer lists, which include the customers’ email addresses and phone numbers. Undoubtedly, it is neither ethical nor legal for me to accept Brawner’s money and give him the customers’ information. Specifically mentions, privacy is one of the largest ethical issues facing organizations. As for the Broadway Café shop, the email addresses and phone numbers are its customers’ privacy. Unless the Broadway can effectively address this issue of privacy, the customers might lose trust in the shop, which would hurt its business. In addition, ethical dilemmas usually arise not in simple, clear-cut situations...
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...of computer ethics are investigated by information ethics, a branch of philosophical ethics established by Luciano Floridi. Computer ethics is a very important topic in computer applications. The importance of computer ethics increased through the 1990s. With the growth of the Internet, privacy issues as well as concerns regarding computing technologies such as spyware and web browser cookies have called into question ethical behavior in technology. Identifying issues Identifying ethical issues as they arise, as well as defining how to deal with them, has traditionally been problematic in computer ethics. Some have argued against the idea of computer ethics as a whole. However, Collins and Miller proposed a method of identifying issues in computer ethics in their Paramedic Ethics model. The model is a data-centered view of judging ethical issues, involving the gathering, analysis, negotiation, and judging of data about the issue. In solving problems relating to ethical issues, Davis proposed a unique problem-solving method. In Davis's model, the ethical problem is stated, facts are checked, and a list of options is generated by considering relevant factors relating to the problem. The actual action taken is influenced by specific ethical standards. Some questions in computer ethics There are a number of questions that are frequently discussed under the rubric of computer ethics. One set of issues deal with some of the new ethical dilemmas that have emerged, or...
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...Current Ethical Issues XMGT/216 February 10th, 2013 Axia College of University of Phoenix Current Ethical Issues In today’s business environment, ethics take a toll far greater than that of previous years. It is more important now than ever that business ensure their ethics program is solid. For Upbeat Financial Service it is important to ensure the six characteristics that build a good solid ethical decision. Trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and good citizenship are known as the “six pillars of character.” (Josephson, 2002) In this paper we are going to outline the services of Upbeat Financial Services and the moral and ethical issues they face. Upbeat Financial Services is a company that offers financial services and a “One-Stop Mortgage provider.” They offer mortgages at the lowest rates available, credit reports, appraisal, and home inspections upon approved credit. (Placeholder1) Their mission statement is as follows; “Upbeat Financial Services will be the preeminent provider of low cost mortgage services using state-of-the-art technology in the five state areas of Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, and South Dakota. We thank you in supporting our mission!” Upbeat Financial Services offer their clients the most efficient and effective processing of mortgage applications...
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...Ethical Issues in Genetic Testing Source: Lea, D. H., Williams, J., & Donahue, M. P. (2005). Ethical issues in genetic testing. Journal of midwifery & Women’s health, 50(3), 234-240. 1. Introduction Since Watson and Crick describe the structure of DNA in 1953, recent advances of technology have provided genetists a powerful tool to better understand the role of human genome in human diseases (Watson & Crick, 1953). Consequently, genetic testing has been becoming popular in clinical settings to identify underlying risk for disease in individual and family members. However, the outburst of genetic tests have led to some ethical issues arising from the ability to identify disease-associated genes. This article gives an overview of ethical theories...
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...Ethical and Legal Issues Concerning At-will Employment Jasmine Mills Park University Abstract As years pass by, every sphere of life is taking a new dimension; for instance, advancing technology. This has resulted in some ethical issues in workplaces such as cyberloafing, privacy, information technology usage, employee monitoring. Also, legal issues in workplaces such as lawsuits have emerged. Both employers and employees are worried about the ethical consequences resulting from the ethical issues While bosses use surveillance devices to keep track of their workers' activities and output, these workers feel that excessive monitoring is an attack on their confidentiality and privacy. The strategy of checking workers on a timely basis is contributed by the fact that bosses have rights over everything in the “at-will employment environment.” Additionally, this paper provides a proposal for reducing the ethical and legal issues. The paper also encourages organizations to generate and efficiently communicate ethical standards for workers in their companies. It also includes real examples of workers' perceptions as well as an emotional state from the surveys based on ethical and legal issues raised regarding the topic of study. Keywords: At-will employment, employee monitoring, Ethical and legal issues. Introduction At- will means employment can be terminated at any time, for any reason or no reason without facing legal action. Likewise, an employee can quit a job with or...
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...The Limits on Genetic Testing There are many arguments out there that need have the concerns of many Americans including the one that will be presented today. The biggest one in the world of science and technology is possibly genetic testing. Genetic testing has so many possibilities in the today’s society that there are legal, social, and ethical problems that allow it to stay at bay. There is fine line that should be drawn when it comes to genetic testing especially when it comes to healthcare and when it leads to vanity. Genetic testing examines a person's genetic code by using a sample of blood or other body fluids/tissues, for health or medical identification purposes; it’s also a type of medical test that identifies changes in chromosomes, genes, or proteins (Genetic Testing). The Human Genome Project, human cloning and stem cell research are all part of this group. Genetic cloning is the reproduction of a new organism that is, at all stages of development, genetically virtually identical to a currently existing, or previously existing, being (Clone). Stem cell is an unspecialized cell that gives rise to a specific specialized cell, such as a blood cell, and they have the ability to divide for indefinite periods in culture and to give rise to specialized cells (Stem Cell). The Human Genome Project was an international research effort to determine the sequence of the human genome and identify the genes that it contains. The Human Genome Project formally began in 1990...
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