Ethics in Information Technology
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Instructions
Paper B: a matrix mapping of a key IT-related organizational (or personal) ethical issue concerning privacy and organizational policy designed to correct the ethical issue.
The first step of this assignment is an opportunity to analyze a key IT-related organizational (or personal, if you are not in the job force) ethical issue, related to privacy, subject to relevant laws, regulations, and policies. Both of the following sites provide sources, and an excellent backdrop for issues relating to privacy protection and the law.
See EPIC Privacy Issues at: http://epic.org/privacy/ See List on left and/or: EFF Privacy at https://www.eff.org/issues/privacy [see list below in center on this page].
This includes sub-topics discussing information privacy, privacy laws, applications and court rulings (case law is usually an extension of the basic law based on the facts from specific cases and real-world court decisions), and key privacy and anonymity issues. While the sites provide many interesting topics, be sure to focus on our class IT topics.
⦁ Use the template below and the list of suggested workforce privacy topics from one of the sites above to produce a matrix to map a key organizational ethical (or personal, if not in the job force) issue and how this issue is affected by laws, regulations, and policies. Use the list of normative ethics below to help you complete the matrix. Choose any three (only three) of the following list of twelve (12) principles of normative ethics described below.
⦁ Prepare the Ethical Issue matrix (single-space in the cells) and include the following explanation (200 words) —double-space your narrative—below the matrix:
⦁
⦁ Why I chose the dilemma;
⦁ Why I chose the three principles; and
⦁ An analysis of the research used to identify the actions in the matrix.
The completed matrix allows you to weigh the different issues involved and assign a rank as to the importance of the actions based on the effect on the stakeholders.
⦁ Indicate appropriate APA in-text and source citations for all sources. In addition to critical thinking and analysis skills, your assignment should reflect appropriate grammar and spelling, good organization, and proper business-writing style.
Normative Ethics List
Autonomy: is the duty to maximize the individual’s right to make his or her own decisions.
Beneficence: is the duty to do good both individually and for all.
Confidentiality: is the duty to respect privacy of information and action.
Equality: is the duty to view all people as moral equals.
Finality: is the duty to take action that may override the demands of law, religion, and social customs.
Justice: is the duty to treat all fairly, distributing the risks and benefits equally.
Non-maleficence: is the duty to cause no harm, both individually and for all.
Understanding/Tolerance: is the duty to understand and to accept another viewpoint if reason dictates doing so is warranted.
Publicity: is the duty to take actions based on ethical standards that must be known and recognized by all who are involved.
Respect for persons: is the duty to honor others, their rights, and their responsibilities. Showing respect others implies that we do not treat them as a mere means to our end.
Universality: is the duty to take actions that hold for everyone, regardless of time, place, or people involved. This concept is similar to the Categorical Imperative.
Veracity: is the duty to tell the truth.
A sample template for the matrix is shown below. To reconstruct the sample template, you may use the Table Tool in MS Word or copy and paste this template.
Ethical issue:
Stakeholders (Principle 1) (Principle 2) (Principle 3)
1
2
3
4
Step 1: Identify the ethical issue that you want to analyze, as described above. An example might be the falsification of your personal profile in a social networking site.
Step 2: Identify the stakeholders involved. You, someone who reads your personal profile in a social network site, potential employers, etc. Be sure that each stakeholder category is unique and not similar to another category you use.
Step 3: Choose any three (only three) of the Normative Ethics principles that might apply to your issue such as autonomy, publicity, and veracity.
Step 4: Identify how the ethical issue affects each stakeholder based on the principles you identified. Put this statement in the matrix next to the stakeholder.
Sample Completed Matrix
Ethical issue: falsifying your profile on a social networking site
Stakeholders autonomy publicity veracity
1: Yourself You have the duty to maximize the right to make your own decisions. You have the duty to take actions based on ethical standards that must be known and recognized by all who are involved. You have the duty to tell the truth
2: Other users of the networking site They have the duty to make their own decisions They make these decisions based on ethical standards that should be recognized by the person falsifying their profile They assume that the person falsifying the profile has the duty to tell the truth.
3: The social networking site The autonomy of the site is limited by law (Goldman, 2007) Users of social networking sites are content publishers, as such the site must take actions based on legal and ethical standards and must notify users of these standards so they are known by all. As providers of content the site must conform to the laws regarding truth or be held responsible for legal issues as defamation (making harmful false statements about someone else) or copyright infringement. (Goldman, 2007)
Reference:
Goldman, E. (2007, May). Social Networking Sites and the Law. Retrieved from
http://www.ericgoldman.org/Resources/socialnetworkingsitesandthelaw.pdf
[Note: Plug the above URL directly into your browser, in its entirety to open]
The second step of this assignment requires that you write an organizational policy (or personal policy, if you are not in the job force) to correct the IT-related ethical issue that you had previously described, where you mapped a key organizational or personal issue and identified how the digital ethical issue was affected by relevant laws, regulations, and policies.
The following elements must be addressed:
You may take a look at other policies to see how they are written. While the following site: https://www.sans.org/information-security-policy/?msc=securityresourceslp
– For other possible SANS resources, go to the home page: https://www.sans.org/ and click on the free resource link which provides credible examples of templates for policies, an Internet search may provide other templates, however there is no need to copy a template for this assignment, as the template should only be utilized to provide guidance regarding the following headings.
Your policy should include appropriate information for the following major headings:
⦁ Overview of the policy – an Introduction
⦁ Purpose of the policy – the aim of the policy
⦁ Scope (roles and responsibilities of stakeholders) – who is involved in policy execution.
⦁ Policy Points to follow – (Note: you should be aware that a policy only describes “what,” the staff of an organization will do, while a procedure describes “how,” the staff of an organization will accomplish a required action. As a result, this section should only discuss the specific measures, needs, or changes to behavior within the organization in terms of policy points, i.e., what they must do to conform to the policy. Any procedures that are needed to assist in doing the “what,” are usually included by reference later in the policy – procedures should not be included in the policy points).
⦁ Sanctions/enforcement of policy – what happens in case of non-compliance
This assignment requires a minimum of three external references. Indicate appropriate APA source citations for all sources you use.
In addition to critical thinking and analysis skills, your paper should reflect appropriate grammar and spelling, good organization, and proper business-writing style.
Prepare a 4-6 page, double-spaced paper with your Ethical Matrix and your Organizational or Personal Policy (if not in the job force).
Submit your Paper B to the LEO Assignments Module as an attached Microsoft Word file. Paper B is due at the end of the fourth week of this course. Include a Cover Page with your Name, the UMGC/Name of the Class, and the Title of the Paper.
