BA 310 Mod 11 Ch 9 Ethics and Information Technology Objectives Explain the types of critical analysis that can be used to evaluate information technology 1 2 Discuss the issues associated with the privacy of employees 3 Describe the issues associated with the privacy of customers 4 5 Discuss areas for technology fraud including those associated with the internet 6 Identify ethical issues facing internet usage Explain the USA Patriot Act 1 Why Are Information Technology Ethical Issues Important Results of American Management Association ePolicy Institute survey of electronics monitoring the respondents reported that they had fired employees for misuse of the corporate 30 of firms reported they had fired workers due to misusing the internet 28 reported they had fired employees for misuse of their corporate email accounts 6 of telephone 73 reported that they automatically monitor employee emails 66 reported they had monitored employees computers to determine which web sites had been selected 65 of the firms stated they used software to block connections to inappropriate websites 45 monitored keystrokes amount of time spent on the computer and the content 43 saved and reviewed computer files of their employees 84 notified their employees they were monitoring the phone 24 had had emails subpoenaed for legal cases 15 had to address workplace lawsuits that were the result of employee email Management Issues and Policy Areas for Information Technology Workers Rights Policy Intellectual Property Rights Policy Management Issues Data Policy Competitiveness Policy Privacy Ownership Control Accuracy Security X X X X X X X X X X X Privacy Ownership There is no mention of right to privacy in the US Constitution While the US Supreme Court has interpreted laws and court cases to mean that there is some implied right to privacy for citizens against their government there is NO right to privacy at work Individuals give up their right to privacy at work since is is a voluntary arrangement In the workplace the employer has ownership rights of everything an employee produces including Emails Phone calls Work product Intellectual property Control of Information Accuracy of Information Security of Information Manager can and do control much of an employee s activity Must balance what is needed for the company with creating a good workplace Firms have an obligation to ensure private information of both employees and customers is correct Must give individuals the right to correct inaccurate information Firm must take all appropriate security to protect private information of employees and customers If there is a breach firm must do everything possible to make victims whole 1 BA 310 Mod 11 Ch 9 Ethics and Information Technology Policy Areas That Can Address Information Technology Management Issues Data Policy Company must establish a policy related to employees who have access to private corporate data so that they understand what is acceptable and not acceptable in terms of releasing or sharing the data Data policy would address the following issues Privacy Control Accuracy Security Intellectual Property Rights Standard Policy Critical Analysis Stakeholder Analysis Firms must have a policy that clearly states which intellectual property is owned by the employees and which is owned by the firm Any intellectual property developed on company time with company resources belongs to the company Universities Patents belong to the university but royalties usually shared Books and articles belong to the faculty member Workers Rights Policy Firms should always inform and make clear what type of monitoring will take place Lack of notification though does not mean monitoring by employers is illegal Which stakeholders will be impacted by this decision What is at risk for each stakeholder How do my decision options impact the interests of the stakeholders Should certain stakeholders be considered a high priority based on this information technology decision Utilitarian Goal Based Analysis Used to help managers determine a decision that will produce the greatest good to the greatest number of stakeholders Attempts to determine the maximum benefits to all of the firm s stakeholders instead of focusing solely on one stakeholder group the stockholders Rights Based Analysis Occurs when a manager reviews the potential decisions and considers how each option would impact the rights of each type of stakeholder For example would the information technology decision impact a stakeholder s human rights privacy rights individual freedoms or institutional rights Duty Based Analysis Focuses on an evaluation of whether the options available to the manager impact any of the fundamental ethical duties of the manager Ethical duties would include being honest fair and truthful 2 Privacy of Employees Electronic Mail E Mail It can be assumed that most email messages are not private Under the 1986 Electronic Communications Privacy Act employers can consider email messages as corporate property Email can be subpoenaed and made public through court proceedings Types of Computer Monitoring Two main types of computer monitoring First type is a software that allows the employer to see what is on the computer screen in an employee s office Second type allows the employer to determine how long a computer has been idle 2 BA 310 Mod 11 Ch 9 Ethics and Information Technology Is an Invasion of Privacy Justifiable by an Employer Criteria to consider For what purpose is the undocumented personal knowledge sought Is this purpose a legitimate and important one Is the knowledge sought through invasion of privacy relevant to its justifying purpose Is invasion of privacy the only or the least offensive means of obtaining the knowledge What restrictions or procedural restraints have been placed on the privacy invading How will the personal knowledge be protected once it has been acquired techniques Telephone Monitoring 1986 Electronic Communications Privacy Act allows monitoring of business related phone calls If the phone call is personal in nature the monitoring must cease but if told that personal calls are prohibited the calls can be monitored Cell phones create even further complications Companies are able to gather store match and make more inferences about information because of greater technological advances violating consumer privacy rights ChoicePoint Inc settled charges with the Federal Trade Commission as a result of 3 Privacy of Customers