COMPUTER ETHICS
Computer ethics is a branch of practical philosophy which deals with how computing professionals should make decisions regarding professional and social conduct.
The term “computer ethics” was first coined by Walter Maner in the mid-1970s, but only since the 1990s has it started being integrated into professional development programs in academic settings.
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 spy-ware and web browser cookies have called into question ethical behavior in technology.
ISSUES
The core issues of computer ethics include, but are not limited to:
Professional Responsibility - Professional responsibility relates to the decisions the computer professional makes regarding
• customer–professional and
• professional–professional relationships
Intellectual Property Rights - The issue of intellectual property rights relates to respecting established copyright rights as defined by law.
Privacy - Issues of privacy relate to the usage of information collected about individuals and stored in databases.
Censorship, And The Impact Of Technology In Society - The final issue, the impact of technology in society, is perhaps the controlling issue in computer ethics. This issue relates to the consequences of the introduction of technology for society as a whole, as well as the place computers have in society.
