Ethical Issue in Computer Engineering

Ethical Issue in Computer Engineering

Introduction

Amongst the notable key benefits of computer regards the view that it offers comfortable and effortless data access through the use of increasingly powerful facilities, communication easy and intricate analysis abilities. However, in instances of personal and sensitive data, this might result in grave abuse as it opens more avenues for the use of the data for functions that are different from the targeted application. As such, this might occur for varied reasons. The existing rules about the individuals and organizations that might utilize data and the purposes of such data collection are neither transparent nor adequately restrictive to safeguard the interests and the intents of the internet users.

The individuals and organizations tasked with the control of personal data generated from the internet might fail, and this might be as a result of the dearth of adequate control with regards to individuals with access to the personal data. Regardless of the reasons, this might result in grave challenges for internet users. This paper has, therefore, been written with the objective of analyzing how engineering can be effectively used to ensure that the digital world is safe and that the user privacy and data is adequately safeguarded. To attain this objective, the issue will be analyzed using social ethics (utilitarianism), which seeks to ascertain that individual actions have to benefit the entire society. As such, this is mainly as a result of the observation that unless the engineers can come up with an effectual means of handling both data and content online, as well as ensuring that companies collecting personal user data held responsible as the practice is unethical and dangerous to the individuals and their communities.

Discussion

According to Hajli and Lin (2016), amongst the increasingly controversial and unethical data collection methodologies, with regards to consumers’ data, concern the use of internet cookies. In describing internet cookies, Mittelstadt and Floridi (2016) note that these are the text files stored on the computer of the users on the web pages that they visit. In this regard, many cookies are known to enable the collection and subsequent storage of users’ personal information including the usernames, web pages visited and the user locations. Even as the individual users may delete many cookies from their computer internet settings, as well as through deletion upon completion of browsing sessions, others are undeletable and are restored continuously in the user computer after their deletion efforts. Such kind of data collection methods, tracking and data usage have raised a lot of ethical concerns and questions as a result of the type of data gathered, the uses of the collected data, as well as the collection and storage of some cookies devoid of consent. Moreover, the companies that collect user data in such a manner have also been seen to ignore the ethical principle of utilitarianism with regards to the use of profits earns from the use of such data.

Regarding the kinds of data collected from internet users, Rivers and Lewis (2014) note that two critical types of user data are gathered using browser cookies with the initial type being the personal identification data including name, address and age, and the second one being the non-personal identification data including the individual purchase and search information. As a consequence of the increment in the identity thefts along with hackings throughout the globe, internet users have raised concerns with regards to the safeguarding of personal identification information. Moreover, the users have also shown concerns with the use of the non-personal identification information over time as a result of the increment in the number of business organizations that have been exposed and are under investigation for unethical collection and misuse of internet users’ data, privacy infringements and the various unethical internet marketing practices. In concurrence with this observation, Mittelstadt and Floridi (2016) maintain that there are still concerns with regards to the internet users’ privacy in spite of the execution of the data privacy regulations that include the United States’ Data Protection Act.

An excellent example of the manner in which the unethical collection of personal user data has raised ethical questions and concerns regards the research on social media use. According to Kshetri(2014), social media has turned out as the primary source for promoting brands and companies, and, for that reason, attract potential consumers to their respective websites. As at 2010, it was possible for retailers and businesses to publish their product offerings on the profiles of Facebook users devoid of the users’ consent, and this was mainly done through the collection of data from the online purchases made and websites visited using cookies. In the year 2007, a company was known as overstock.com erroneously published the buying of an engagement ring to a user’s profile, and as a result, the post ruined the surprised engagement he had planned as his friends, fiancé and family saw the ring before the proposal. Such incidences have prompted Facebook to alter such features enable the users to determine whether they approve the sharing of purchases on their profiles and timelines, and the feature was eventually eliminated.

As observed from the Facebook case, organizations are actively using the personal and non-personal internet users’ data unethically in a bid to sell more of their products and services.     According to Münzel (2015), the internet offers organization fertile marketing grounds regardless of being an obstacle to the ethical utilization of individual data. Given the fast increase in the uptake of increasingly connected lifestyles by the internet users, the responsibility with regards to the manner in which data is gathered, shared and utilized is prone to be increasingly intricate and nearly impracticable for the individual users to be accountable. In my trust, this is mainly a result of the observation that, at the moment, a more substantial proportion of the consumers have become increasingly preoccupied with understanding how their data is gathered, analyzed and also utilized. Typically, the user of the internet fails to read the provided privacy policies before agreeing to the offered terms of usage. Instead, the users tend to pick their trusted brands and anticipate that the organizations will cautiously safeguard and utilize their information responsibly. However, the collection and use of the collected data is usually carried out at the expense of the internet users as the data is collected unethically and devoid of the necessary user consent, even as the organizations use the data to their advantages thereby neglecting the need to ensure overall good of the users and the society in general.

How Computer Engineering Can Aid in Mitigating Against Unethical Data Collection and Usage Practices

Computer engineering has been observed to be at the digital transformation’s coalface given that it proffers increased amounts of opportunities for the realization of social good with regards to the computer engineering field. In a few years, personal and non-personal data have become the most priceless commodities globally. The increased volumes of the private users’ data on social media, applications and the internet browsers have led to the creation of various information swathes from where organizations tend to mine valuable insights that enable them to sell their products and services (Manogaran, Thota & Lopez, 2018).  However, such activities are founded on the continued development of the internet data use ethical frameworks, as well as increased levels of transparency with the internet users on their personal and non-personal data besides the consistent cognizance of the probable biases that might be employed by the organizations using the data.

With regards to the increased transparency with the users in relation to their data usage and collections, Schumann, von Wangenheim and Groene (2014) note that the mindful building, assessment of the datasets, along with the collaborations with policymakers and professionals outside the field of computer engineering might be useful in the development of codes of ethics that meet the faster evolution and pace of internet innovations. The collaborative mindset has been proposed as a solution with the capability of ensuring that the data collected is ethically used for the good of the entire society, an aspect that will provide utilitarian use of the proceeds made from the data obtained from internet users (Münzel, 2015).

To attain the goals of ensuring utilitarianism in the use of data collected from the internet users, the computer engineers are required to meet the different duty ethics of engineering at both the individual and the societal levels. According to Basart, Farrús and Serra (2015), the duty ethics of engineering are comparable across the various engineering field. As such, the duty ethics of computer engineering requires all computer engineers to ensure that they hold paramount the privacy and safety of the users of computer devices, in addition to providing the welfare of the society by striving to ensure compliance with the principles of utilitarianism and sustainability in discharging their duties. With regards to the use of personal data, this duty ethic requires computer engineers to ensure that the privacy of the users and the safety of their data is maintained and only collected upon user approval. Besides, the duty ethic also requires the computer engineer to ensure that the data collected is used to the advantage of the society by providing that the ethical principle of utilitarianism is attained using the data (Basart, Farrús& Serra, 2015). One way the computer engineer can ensuring that utilitarianism is accomplished is through providing that the data collected from the users is used in the development of solutions to challenges faced by individuals within the society (Manogaran, Thota& Lopez, 2018).

The duty ethics requires the computer engineers to be truthful and objective with regards to their public statements, over and above acting professionally by avoiding conflicts of interests. For instance, by being honest and objective in their duties, the duty ethics requires computer engineers to not only elaborate how and why the online user data is collected and used but also indicate why the activity is unethical and how it can be avoided. Still, the ethics require computer engineers to act professionally to prevent conflict of interests by ensuring that they do not partake in any collaboration with their clients to enable collection of data in an unethical way, and the subsequent unethical use of such data. Lastly, the duty ethics also require the computer engineers to act in a way that not only upholds but also improves the honor, dignity and integrity of the profession. To attain this, the duty ethic requires the computer engineers to steer clear of corruption, fraud and bribery.

By making sure that the various duty ethics and the ethical principles of utilitarianism are met, computer engineers are prone to play a significant role in the execution of policies and regulations meant to regulate the data collection and usage practices of organizations. Moreover, in meeting the principles of utilitarianism through the usage of data collected from internet users, computer engineers are prone to ensure that the proceeds that accrue from such data collection are used are distributed effectively in the society. Moreover, this will ensure that the data is utilized in the development of products and services that meet the needs of the community.

Conclusion

            In summary, though the control of the means through which the user personal and non-personal data is collected seems nearly impossible, there are many ways through which ethical data collection can be carried out. Given that Computer Engineering is directly involved and also plays a significant role in the manner in which such data are collected and used. In this regard, through the observation and compliance with the duty ethics and the various ethical principles including utilitarianism, computer engineers, along with other experts in fields related to computing will ensure ethical collection and use of user data. This paper has, therefore, lived up to its objective of analyzing how computer engineering can be used in securing a safer and ethical digital world in which the user privacy and data is aptly safeguarded.

References

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Hajli, N., & Lin, X. (2016). Exploring the security of information sharing on social networking     sites: The role of perceived control of information. Journal of Business Ethics, 133(1),           111-123.

Kshetri, N. (2014). Big data׳ s impact on privacy, security and consumer     welfare. Telecommunications Policy, 38(11), 1134-1145.

Manogaran, G., Thota, C., & Lopez, D. (2018). Human-computer interaction with big data           analytics. In HCI challenges and privacy preservation in big data security (pp. 1-22). IGI       Global.

Mittelstadt, B. D., &Floridi, L. (2016). The ethics of big data: current and foreseeable issues in     biomedical contexts. Science and engineering ethics, 22(2), 303-341.

Münzel, H. (2015, July). Towards an ethical Foundation of Green Software Engineering. In Global Software Engineering Workshops (ICGSEW), 2015 IEEE 10th International   Conference on (pp. 23-26). IEEE.

Rivers, C. M., & Lewis, B. L. (2014). Ethical research standards in a world of big data. F1000Research, 3.

Schumann, J. H., von Wangenheim, F., &Groene, N. (2014). Targeted online advertising: Using   reciprocity appeals to increase acceptance among users of free web services. Journal of             Marketing, 78(1), 59-75.