Ethical, Legal, Cultural, and Environmental impacts of digital technology

Ethics refer to what is right or wrong, rather than the legalities

Arguments for the regulation of the Internet

• The Internet has harmful, offensive, and illegal content.
• Children should be better protected.
• Profit-making organisations on the Internet should share the responsibility for policing the Internet they have created.

Arguments against the regulation of the Internet

• Freedom of expression is an absolute right.
  
• The Internet grows too quickly for filtering to be effective.
• Censorship is bad for democracy.
• Parents should take more responsibility

Implications for personal privacy have arisen due to the vast array of cameras and surveillance systems around.

Data is an incredibly valuable commodity.

Schools often monitor the Internet, email, and general computer activity.

Companies often monitor their workforce's browser use and record their business calls.

Computer systems causing 'Privacy Issues'

• Number plate recognition
  
• Face recognition
• Cell phone location and GPS tracking
• Smart listening devices.

Culture refers to the ideas, behaviour, and beliefs of a group of people.

• The pace of technological advancements and the effect on society
• The 'Digital Divide' and unequal access to the Internet
• Censorship and the Internet
• Cultural influences of developers on software

Technology is changing how people live their lives today; we have an ever-increasing dependency on it.

Negative effects of technology on culture

• Developing countries risk losing their cultural identities and assimilating themselves into an increasingly westernised world.
• Challenges of inequality from the uneven distribution of technology within a country also still remain.

Manufacturing computer technologies puts a huge demand on natural resources, namely rare earth metals, which are finite.

Most modern computers consume low levels of electricity but are often left running permanently. Data centres, which are large facilities that store all sorts of data, account for around 2% of global energy consumption.

Disposal of computing technologies

• Old computing equipment (e-waste) is often shipped to countries with lower standards for disposal.
• People, in developing/emerging countries, go through old computers to salve raw materials - this exposes them to dangerous chemicals and environments.

Harmful materials: Dioxins, Chromium, Mercury, Cadmium, Radioactive isotopes

The Data Protection Act 2018

• Data must be processed lawfully, fairly, and in a transparent manner.
• Data must be collected for specified, explicit, and legitimate reasons.
• Data must be adequate, relevant, and limited.
• Data must be accurate and kept up to date.
• Data must be kept for no longer than necessary.
• Data must be processed in a manner that ensures the security of the data.

Data controllers must be able to prove that their data security measures are sufficient.

Computer Misuse Act 1990, a piece of legislation which had to be created to keep up with technology.

It is illegal to make any unauthorised access to data with the intent to modify data or commit further offences

Examples of illegal activity

• Unauthorised work
• Planting of viruses
  
• Hacking
• Deliberate data destruction
• Data theft
• Fraud

Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988, a piece of legislation which had to evolve to keep up with technology.

This act makes it illegal to copy, modify or distribute any intellectual property without the author's or copyright holder's permission.

Owning the copyright does not stop others from copying it, but it does allow only the owner to bring an action in court.

This act may relate to work such as a digital file, image, piece of software, music, etc.

A license specifies how the user may use the product.

Open-source software

• Users can modify and distribute the software
  
• Can be installed on any number of computers
• Support provided by the community
• Users have full access to the source code
• The software may not be fully tested

Proprietary software

• Users cannot modify the software, protected by the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988
• Usually paid for and licensed per user or per computer
• Support provided by the developers
• Users do not have access to the source code
• Tested by developers prior to release. Although, they may also run beta programmes.