Ethical and Secure Computing : A Concise Module

This textbook highlights the essential need for a strong ethical framework in our approach to teaching of and working in computer, information and engineering sciences. Through thought-provoking questions and case studies, the reader is challenged to consider the deeper implications arising from the use of today’s rapidly evolving computing technologies and ever-changing communication ecosystems. This thoroughly revised and updated third edition features revised chapters with new and updated content and hardened the ethical framework. To cope with the rapidly changing computing and telecommunication ecosystem, a new chapter, Ethics and Social Responsibility in the Metaverse , has been added. The interface between our current universe and the evolving metaverse presents a security quagmire . The discussion throughout the book is candid and intended to ignite students’ and professionals’ interest and active participation in discussions of the issues we are facing now and those likely to emerge in the near future. Topics and features―including fully updated content : Introduces a philosophical framework and tools for understanding and analyzing computer ethics in personal, public, and professional spheres Describes the impact of computer technology on issues of security, privacy, anonymity, and civil liberties Discusses the security and ethical quagmire in the platforms of the developing metaverse (NEW chapter) Examines intellectual property rights in the context of computing, including the risks and liabilities associated with software Discusses such key social issues in computing as the digital divide, employee monitoring in the workplace, and risks to physical and mental health Reviews the history of computer crime, and the threat of digitally facilitated bullying, harassment, and discrimination Considers the ethical challenges arising from online social networks, mobile telecommunication technologies, virtual reality, the Internet of Things and 5G technologies Includes learning objectives, discussion questions and exercises throughout This concise and accessible work addresses the critical ethical and moral issues important to all designers and users of computer technologies. The text incorporates the latest curricula requirements for undergraduate courses in computer science, as well as offers invaluable insights into the social impact and legal challenges posed by the latest generation of computing devices and networks. Preface Chapter Overview Audience Associate-Degree Computing Curricula CSTA K-12 CS Standards, 2017 Edition Contents 1 Morality and the Law 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Morality 1.2.1 Moral Theories 1.2.2 Moral Decision Making 1.2.3 Moral Codes 1.2.4 Moral Standards 1.2.5 Guilt and Conscience 1.2.6 Morality and Religion 1.3 Law 1.3.1 The Natural Law 1.3.2 Conventional Law 1.3.3 The Purpose of Law 1.3.4 The Penal Code 1.4 Morality and the Law 1.5 Morality, Etiquettes, and Manners References 2 Ethics and Ethical Analysis 2.1 Traditional Definition 2.2 Ethical Theories 2.2.1 Consequentialism 2.2.2 Deontology 2.2.3 Human Nature 2.2.4 Relativism 2.2.5 Hedonism 2.2.6 Emotivism 2.3 Functional Definition of Ethics 2.4 Ethical Reasoning and Decision Making 2.4.1 A Framework for Ethical Decision Making 2.4.2 Making and Evaluating Ethical Arguments 2.5 Codes of Ethics 2.5.1 Objectives of Codes of Ethics 2.6 Reflections on Computer Ethics 2.6.1 New Wine in an Old Bottle 2.7 Technology and Values References 3 Ethics and the Professions 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Evolution of Professions 3.2.1 Origins of Professions 3.2.2 Requirements of a Professional 3.2.3 Pillars of Professionalism 3.3 The Making of an Ethical Professional: Education and Licensing 3.3.1 Formal Education 3.3.2 Licensing Authorities 3.3.3 Professional Codes of Conduct 3.4 Professional Decision Making and Ethics 3.4.1 Professional Dilemmas in Decision Making 3.4.2 Guilt and Making Ethical Decisions 3.5 Professionalism and Ethical Responsibilities 3.5.1 Whistle-Blowing 3.5.2 Harassment and Discrimination 3.5.3 Ethical and Moral Implications References 4 Anonymity, Security, Privacy, and Civil Liberties 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Anonymity 4.2.1 Anonymity and the Internet 4.2.2 Advantages and Disadvantages of Anonymity 4.2.3 Legal View of Anonymity 4.3 Security 4.3.1 Physical Security 4.3.2 Physical Access Controls 4.3.3 Information Security Controls 4.3.4 Operational Security 4.4 Privacy 4.4.1 Definition 4.4.2 Types of Privacy 4.4.3 Value of Privacy 4.4.4 Privacy Implications of the Database System 4.4.5 Privacy Violations and Legal Implications 4.4.6 Privacy Protection and Civil Liberties 4.5 Ethical and Legal Framework for Information 4.5.1 Ethics and Privacy 4.5.2 Ethical and Legal Basis for Privacy Protection References 5 Intellectual Property Rights and Computer Technology 5.1 Definitions 5.2 Computer Products and Services 5.3 Foundations of Intellectual Property 5.3.1 Copyrights 5.3.2 Patents 5.3.3 Trade Secrets 5.3.4 Trademarks 5.3.5 Personal Identity 5.4 Ownership 5.4.1 The Politics of Ownership 5.4.2 The Psychology of Ownership 5.5 Intellectual Property Crimes 5.5.1 Infringement 5.5.2 The First Sale Doctrine 5.5.3 The Fair Use Doctrine 5.6 Protection of Ownership Rights 5.6.1 Domain of Protection 5.6.2 Source and Types of Protection 5.6.3 Duration of Protection 5.6.4 Strategies of Protection 5.7 Protecting Computer Software Under the IP 5.7.1 Software Piracy 5.7.2 Protection of Software Under Copyright Laws 5.7.3 Protection of Software Under Patent Laws 5.7.4 Protection of Software Under Trademarks 5.7.5 Protection of Software Under Trade Secrets 5.8 Transnational Issues and Intellectual Property References 6 Social Context of Computing 6.1 Introduction 6.2 The Digital Divide 6.2.1 Access 6.2.2 Technology 6.2.3 Humanware (Human Capacity) 6.2.4 Infrastructure 6.2.5 Enabling Environments 6.3 Obstacles to Overcoming the Digital Divide 6.4 ICT in the Workplace 6.4.1 The Electronic Office 6.4.2 Office on Wheels and Wings 6.4.3 The Virtual Workplace 6.4.4 The Quiet Revolution: The Growth of Telecommuting 6.4.5 Employee Social and Ethical Issues 6.5 Employee Monitoring 6.5.1 Workplace Privacy and Surveillance 6.5.2 Electronic Monitoring 6.6 Employee Health and Productivity in the Workplace 6.6.1 Ergonomics References 7 Software Issues: Risks and Liabilities 7.1 Definitions 7.1.1 Standards 7.1.2 Reliability 7.1.3 Security 7.1.4 Safety 7.1.5 Quality 7.1.6 Quality of Service 7.2 Causes of Software Failures 7.2.1 Human Factors 7.2.2 Nature of Software: Complexity 7.3 Risk 7.3.1 Risk Assessment and Management 7.3.2 Risks and Hazards in Workplace Systems 7.3.3 Historic Examples of Software Risks 7.4 Consumer Protection 7.4.1 Buyers’ Rights 7.4.2 Classification of Computer Software 7.4.3 The Contract Option 7.4.4 The Tort Option 7.5 Improving Software Quality 7.5.1 Techniques for Improving Software Quality 7.6 Producer Protection References 8 Computer Crimes 8.1 Introduction 8.2 History of Computer Crimes 8.3 Types of Computer Systems Attacks 8.3.1 Penetration 8.3.2 Denial of Service 8.4 Motives of Computer Crimes 8.5 Costs and Social Consequences 8.5.1 Lack of Cost Estimate Model for Cyberspace Attacks 8.5.2 Social and Ethical Consequences 8.6 Computer Crime Prevention Strategies 8.6.1 Protecting Your Computer 8.6.2 The Computer Criminal 8.6.3 The Innocent Victim References 9 Cyberbullying, Cyberstalking and Cyber Harassment 9.1 Definitions 9.1.1 Cyberbullying 9.1.2 Cyberstalking 9.1.3 Cyber Harassment 9.2 Types of Cyberbullying 9.2.1 Harassment 9.2.2 Flaming 9.2.3 Exclusion 9.2.4 Outing 9.2.5 Masquerading 9.3 Areas of Society Most Affected by Cyberbullying 9.3.1 Schools 9.3.2 Cyberbullying in the Workplace 9.4 Legislation Against Cyberbullying 9.4.1 Federal Laws 9.4.2 State Laws 9.4.3 International Laws 9.5 Effects of Cyberbullying 9.6 Dealing with Cyberbullying 9.6.1 Awareness 9.6.2 Legislations 9.6.3 Community Support 9.7 Resources References 10 Evolving Realities: Ethical and Secure Computing in the New Technological Spaces 10.1 Introduction 10.2 Artificial Intelligence 10.2.1 Advances in Artificial Intelligence 10.3 Cyberspace and the Concept of Telepresence 10.4 Securing Cyberspace 10.4.1 Detecting Attacks in Cyberspace 10.4.2 Vulnerability Scanning in Cyberspace 10.4.3 Privacy in Cyberspace 10.5 Social Issues in Cyberspace 10.6 Artificial Intelligence and Ethics References 11 Ethical, Privacy, and Security Issues in the Online Social Network Ecosystems 11.1 Introduction 11.2 Introduction to Computer Networks 11.2.1 Computer Network Models 11.2.2 Computer Network Types 11.3 Social Networks (SNs) 11.4 Online Social Networks (OSNs) 11.4.1 Types of Online Social Networks 11.4.2 Online Social Networking Services 11.4.3 The Growth of Online Social Networks 11.5 Ethical and Privacy Issues in Online Social Networks 11.5.1 Privacy Issues in OSNs 11.5.2 Strengthening Privacy in OSNs 11.5.3 Ethical Issues in Online Social Networks 11.6 Security and Crimes in Online Social Networks 11.6.1 Beware of Ways to Perpetrate Crimes in Online Social Networks 11.6.2 Defense Against Crimes in Online Social Networks 11.7 Proven Security Protocols and Best Practices in Online Social Networks 11.7.1 Authentication 11.7.2 Access Control 11.7.3 Legislation 11.7.4 Self-regulation 11.7.5 Detection 11.7.6 Recovery References 12 Virtualization, Virtual Reality and Ethics 12.1 Virtualization 12.2 Different Aspects of Virtualization 12.3 Virtualization of Computing Resources 12.3.1 History of Computing Virtualization 12.3.2 Computing Virtualization Terminologies 12.3.3 Types of Computing System Virtualization 12.3.4 The Benefits of Computing Virtualization 12.4 Virtual Reality/(Virtual Presence) 12.4.1 Different Types of Virtual Reality 12.5 Virtualization and Ethics 12.6 Social and Ethical Implication of Virtualization 12.7 Virtualization Security as an Ethical Imperative 12.7.1 Hypervisor Security 12.7.2 Securing Communications Between Desktop and Virtual Environment 12.7.3 Security of Communication Between Virtual Environments 12.7.4 Threats and Vulnerabilities Originating from a Virtual Environment References 13 Artificial Intelligence: Ethical and Social Problems of Large Language Models and the Future of Technology 13.1 Introduction 13.2 Definition 13.2.1 Language Models 13.2.2 Large Language Models (LLMs) 13.2.3 Problems with Large Language Models (LLMs) 13.3 Ethical and Social Problems with Large Language Models 13.3.1 Discrimination and Biases 13.3.2 Information Hazards 13.3.3 Misinformation 13.3.4 Privacy and Security Concerns 13.4 The Role of Big Technology Companies 13.5 Overcoming Challenges 13.5.1 Legislative Oversight 13.5.2 Sound AI Ethical Framework 13.6 Next Steps and the Future of AI References 14 Evolving Cyberspace: The Marriage of 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT) Technologies 14.1 Introduction 14.2 Fifth Generation (5G) Technology (G5) 14.2.1 Overview of 5G Wireless Communications 14.2.2 5G Network Architecture and Protocol Stack Perspectives 14.2.3 Technical Challenges of 5G Technology 14.3 The Internet of Things (IoT) 14.3.1 Overview and Growth of Internet of Things 14.3.2 Architecture and Networking of IoT 14.3.3 Challenges of Using TCP/IP Architecture Over the IoT 14.3.4 IoT Governance, Privacy and Security Challenges 14.3.5 Governance and Privacy Concerns 14.3.6 Security Challenges 14.3.7 Autonomy 14.3.8 Computational Constraints 14.3.9 Discovery 14.3.10 Trust Relationships 14.4 Ethical, Social and Legal Impacts of 5G and IoT 14.4.1 Environment 14.4.2 E-waste 14.4.3 Conflict Minerals 14.4.4 Healthy Issues Emanating from 5G and IoT Technologies 14.4.5 Ethics References 15 Metaverse, the Evolving Realities and Ethics 15.1 Introduction 15.2 Definition 15.3 The Evolution of Metaverse 15.4 The Architecture of Metaverse 15.4.1 Metaverse Avatars 15.4.2 Metaverse Platforms 15.5 Actualization of Metaverse 15.5.1 The Concept of Telepresence 15.5.2 Localization 15.6 Benefits of Metaverse 15.6.1 E-Commerce in Metaverse 15.6.2 Metaverse Billing and Payment Systems 15.7 Social and Ethical Concerns of the Metaverse 15.7.1 Metaverse Immersion and Autonomy 15.7.2 Metaverse and Transparency 15.7.3 Metaverse and Trustworthiness 15.7.4 Metaverse and Privacy 15.7.5 Metaverse and Access Inequality 15.7.6 Interoperability in Metaverse 15.7.7 Metaverse and Freedom of Expression References Index With or without the pandemic, tremendous technological advances have been registered across the board from telecommunication to com-puting with jaw dropping developments. From pandemic fears and resignation to chatbot excitement followed by fears, we are being jolted into the new and constantly changing realities of our time. Along the way, these developments are creating an unprecedented convergence of communications and computing plat-form technologies that are reaching into all remote corners of the physical space and beyond into the developing and yet to be metaverse virtual space. These new technological developments have created new communities and ecosystems that are themselves evolving, in flux and difficult to secure and with questionable, if not evolving ethical systems that will take us time to learn, if it remains constant at all.As we look for ethical and secure computing strategies, the technological race is picking up speed with new technologies that make our efforts and existing pro-tocols on which these strategies based obsolete in shorter and shorter periods. All these illustrate the speed at which the computing environment is changing and demonstrate a need for continuous review of our defensive strategies and more importantly a need for a strong ethical and secure framework in our computer, information, and engineering science education. This has been and will continue to be the focus of all my writings on this topic, and it is and remains so in this third edition.