Transcript Information Ethics

Information Ethics
and Policy
Adam D. Moore
Department of Philosophy
& Information School
http://www.aclu.org/pizza/
https://www.privacyinternational.org/article/leading-surveillance-societies-eu-and-world-2007
Wiki leaks on the government…
…and coming soon…
Wiki leaks on big business…
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What’s wrong with WikiLeaks??
 Nothing
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to hide… “just trust us”
Why not trade privacy for security?…technology
makes it easy.
 Power
tends to corrupt….absolute power
corrupts absolutely…
WikiLeaks
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The Wikileaks movement has started a “wild west” of
information sharing where the playing field has been
(or will be) leveled…perhaps this is a good place to
start.
Two questions:
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First, in connection to other citizens, government
agencies, corporations, etc….what kinds of information
do we have a right to access…what is an appropriate
level of access?
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Second, what do we owe each other in terms of
information sharing? I would argue that a fruitful starting
place would be to begin with the notion of “selfgovernment” and the information sharing necessary for
promoting the stability of democratic institutions.
Information Ethics
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Ethical Theory
Security
Free Speech
Intellectual Property
Privacy
Policy, Law
Ethical IT design
Etc.
Ethical Theory
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A Theory of Moral Value: What is moral
value? What is good or bad? What has
value in the realm of human experience?
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Hedonsim, eudaimonism, desire satisfaction
A Theory of Moral Obligation: What makes
an action right or wrong? Where do rights
come from?
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Consequentialism, deontology, virtue ethics?
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Two test cases: Trapped in an Underwater Sea-Cave, The Case of Reluctant Donation
Government and Corporate control
of information
Controlling data…
• Choice Point, Axicom
• Event Data Recorders (EDRs)
• GPS, employee tracking
• Google Search
• Facial recognition technology
• bio-implants, RIFDs
• store loyalty cards
• video surveillance
Radio-frequency identification
Ethical Dimension: Imposed or
Chosen?
http://www.aclu.org/pizza/
Government Surveillance:
The USA Patriot Act
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FISA Courts
Administrative subpoenas
TIA – Total Info Awareness
TIPS --Terrorism Information
and Prevention System
Secret wire-taps
Government
transparency
 Nothing
to hide?
Can you think of
any ethical
problems or
issues related to
this picture?
 …or more
recently the
Craig's list
experiment?
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Free Speech
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Justifications for Freedom of Speech
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Check on power (government and corporations
“truth” discovery
Personal growth and individuality
Anonymity protects privacy
Necessary for stable democratic institutions
Accuracy – “I just said ‘thanks but no thanks
to that bridge to no-where”
 Spin – bias
 Yale cultural cognition project
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(more info does not help…an
individual’s world/cultural views largely determines what she believes….individualist, hierarchist, solidarist/communitarian,
egalitarian)
Intellectual Property
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What is IP?
 Copyright,
patent, trademark, trade secret
 TRIPS agreement
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The Justification of IP rights?
 Incentives-based
social progress argument
 Deontological arguments
 Personality-based arguments
Privacy
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Defining privacy
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The value of privacy
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Justifying privacy rights
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Privacy protections in the
law. 4th Amendment,
torts, etc.
Tensions with Speech and IP
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Privacy v. Free Speech
 If
individuals have
informational privacy rights
then these rights may restrict
freedom of speech and
freedom of the press.
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Privacy v. Intellectual
Property
 If
individuals have
informational privacy rights
then these rights may limit
intellectual property rights.
Discussion Case: Intellectual property
v. Privacy v. Free Speech
Cape Publications, Inc. v. Bridges, Florida 1982: A
women is kidnapped, taken to an apartment,
stripped, and terrorized. The police — and the
media — surround the apartment. The police
eventually overcome the kidnapper and rush the
woman, who clutches a dish towel in a futile
attempt to conceal her nudity, to safety. A
photograph of her escape is published in the next
day's newspaper. She sued for invasion of
privacy and eventually lost the case.
More Cases
Suppose,
for example, that Mr. Friday buys a painting at a garage
sale—a long-lost Crusoe original. Friday takes the painting home and
alters the painting with a marker, drawing horns and mustaches on the
figures in the painting. The additions are so clever and fit so nicely into
the painting that Friday hangs it in a window on a busy street.
Net
Neutrality
E-mail Monitoring
P1. It is morally permitted to trespass on the property of others as long
as one’s motives are good and no harm is done.
P2. Many hackers have good intentions and do no damage.
C3. Some hacking should be permitted