Traditionalists and uniqueness proponents are each partly correct. Traditionalists correctly point out that no new ethical issues have been introduced by computers. Uniqueness proponents are correct in that cybertechnology has complicated our analysis of traditional ethical issues. | Lecture 06 Cyberethics By Dr. Saqib Iqbal Uniqueness Issue (Continued) Traditionalists and uniqueness proponents are each partly correct. Traditionalists correctly point out that no new ethical issues have been introduced by computers. Uniqueness proponents are correct in that cybertechnology has complicated our analysis of traditional ethical issues. Uniqueness Issue (Continued) So we must distinguish between: (a) unique technological features, and (b) any (alleged) unique ethical issues. Two scenarios from the text: (a) Computer professionals designing and coding a controversial computer system (b) Software piracy Case Illustration of a Policy Vacuum: Duplicating Software In the early 1980s, there were no clear laws regarding the duplication of software programs, which was made easy because of personal computers. A policy vacuum arose. Before the policy vacuum could be filled, we had to clear up a conceptual muddle: What exactly is software? Cyberethics as a Branch of Applied Ethics Applied ethics, unlike theoretical ethics, examines "practical" ethical issues. It analyzes moral issues from the vantage-point of one or more ethical theories. Ethicists working in fields of applied ethics are more interested in applying ethical theories to the analysis of specific moral problems than in debating the ethical theories themselves. Cyberethics as a Branch of Applied Ethics (continued) Three distinct perspectives of applied ethics (as applied to cyberethics): Professional Ethics Philosophical Ethics Descriptive Ethics Perspective # 1: Professional Ethics According to this view, cyberethics is the field that identifies and analyzes issues of ethical responsibility for computer professionals. Consider a computer professional's role in designing, developing, and maintaining computer hardware and software systems. Suppose a programmer discovers that a software product she has been working on is about to be released for sale to the public, even though it is unreliable because | Lecture 06 Cyberethics By Dr. Saqib Iqbal Uniqueness Issue (Continued) Traditionalists and uniqueness proponents are each partly correct. Traditionalists correctly point out that no new ethical issues have been introduced by computers. Uniqueness proponents are correct in that cybertechnology has complicated our analysis of traditional ethical issues. Uniqueness Issue (Continued) So we must distinguish between: (a) unique technological features, and (b) any (alleged) unique ethical issues. Two scenarios from the text: (a) Computer professionals designing and coding a controversial computer system (b) Software piracy Case Illustration of a Policy Vacuum: Duplicating Software In the early 1980s, there were no clear laws regarding the duplication of software programs, which was made easy because of personal computers. A policy vacuum arose. Before the policy vacuum could be filled, we had to clear up a conceptual muddle: What exactly is software? Cyberethics as a Branch of Applied Ethics
