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Ethics in Information Technology, Sixth Edition
Ethics in Information Technology, Sixth Edition
Chapter 4
Privacy
Self-Assessment Questions
1. False
2. c. PRISM
3. False
4. d. Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act
Discussion Questions
1. For some people, knowing that 21 different government agencies are authorized to gather
intelligence data provides them with a sense of security. Others believe that this creates a
significant opportunity for duplication of effort and wasted resources. Still others are
concerned that everything about them and what they do is known by the government. Choose
one side of this issue and defend your position.
Students’ answers will vary. Students might argue that some loss of privacy is a reasonable price to
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2. Prepare a set of arguments that would support the contention that the USA PATRIOT Act
was overreaching in both its scope and its approach. Then prepare a set of arguments that
support the USA PATRIOT Act as an effective and appropriate way to protect the United
States from further terrorist acts.
Students’ answers will vary. Overreaching: The USA PATRIOT Act, which was passed in just five
weeks, gave sweeping new powers to both domestic law enforcement and U.S. international
3. Do you think a FOIA request from an average citizen for information about the process by
which potential drone targets are selected and approved should be granted? Why or why not?
Students’ answers will vary. Some students will argue that such a FOIA request should be granted
because citizens have a right to know the details of U.S. military operations in foreign countries.
4. Go to the website of one of the three primary consumer credit reporting companies (Equifax,
Experian, or TransUnion). Find the instructions to request a free credit report, and do so.
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How long did it take to receive your free credit report? Is there information on the report you
believe to be in error? Check the website and credit report to find out how can you dispute
any information which you believe is in error.
Students’ answers will vary. Students can visit any one of the following websites: Equifax
5. Do research to gather and summarize the key facts in Katz v. United States. Do you agree with
the Supreme Court’s ruling in this case? Why did this case set such an important precedent?
Students’ answers will vary. Katz was convicted of illegal gambling based on recordings by the FBI
of Katz’s side of various telephone calls made from a public phone booth; the recordings were
6. What is predictive coding? How is it different from doing key word searches on documents?
What are the key issues to weigh when considering use of predictive coding?
Predictive coding is a process that couples human guidance with computer-driven concept
searching in order to “train” document review software to recognize relevant documents within a
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7. Do you believe it is acceptable for a website to assume that consumers are okay with any
changes the site makes to it privacy policy unless they explicitly take action to opt out?
Explain your reasoning.
Students’ answers will vary. Some students will argue that the ethical approach is for a company to
notify all visitors to its website of the details included in its privacy policy. Students might also
8. Should some sort of congressional approval or review process be established for executive
orders? Why or why not?
Students’ answers will vary. Some students may believe that the judicial review process, through
which executive orders can be struck down if the court deems them to be unsupported by statute or
9. What is the difference between a pen register and a trap and trace? What is required in order
for a law enforcement agency to gain approval for use of one of these measures?
A pen register is a device that records electronic impulses to identify the numbers dialed for
outgoing calls. A trap and trace is a device that records the originating number of incoming calls for
10. What are the main reasons employers monitor workers? Provide examples of three types of
employee monitoring that you feel are justified. Provide three examples of three types of
employee monitoring you feel are not justified.
The potential for decreased productivity (which might be caused by cyberloafing) and increased
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11. Do you think that law enforcement agencies should be able to use advanced surveillance
cameras and data from vehicle data recorders in a court of law? Why or why not?
Students’ answers will vary. Surveillance cameras are used in major cities around the world in an
effort to deter crime and terrorist activities. Critics believe that such scrutiny is a violation of civil
liberties and are concerned about the cost of the equipment and people required to monitor the
12. Do you think that the installation of stalker software on suspects’ cell phones should be
authorized for law enforcement agencies? If so, under what circumstances should such use be
permitted? If not, why not.
Students’ answers will vary. Some students may suggest that installing stalker software on a
suspect’s cell phone should be permitted only under court order and only if there is evidence that
What Would You Do
1. According to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) (15 U.S.C. §§ 6501–6506),
any website that caters to children must offer comprehensive privacy policies, notify parents or
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2. Students’ answers may vary. A stalking app, can be loaded onto someone’s cell phone or
smartphone within minutes, making it possible for the user to perform location tracking, record
3. Students’ answers will vary. Students might suggest that the employee should immediately contact
his or her manager (assuming it is not the CFO) before taking any action. Students might also
4. Students’ answers will vary. Some students might say they would not be willing to give up the
control of so much private data even in exchange for a significant discount on their insurance.
5. Students’ answers will vary. Depending on the quality of the data collected by the broker, one
advantage of purchasing it would be that it would provide a relatively inexpensive way to gather
detailed information regarding larger numbers of consumers who make up the dealership’s target
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Cases
Case 1: Serious Data Breach at OPM
2. Students’ answers may vary, but could include the following:
• Because the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) conducts its own background checks on
potential employees, and did not manage the process through the OPM, any State
3. Answers regarding steps the OPM has taken to improve its cybersecurity might touch on topics
such as multifactor authentication, blocked access to Gmail accounts from government computers,
and improved monitoring by the OPM of all devices connected to its networks. For more
information, students could do research on a variety of websites, including the following:
• Committee on Oversight and Government Reform U.S. House of Representatives 114th
Congress, “The OPM Data Breach: How the Government Jeopardized Our National
Case 2: Time to Update the Electronic Communications Privacy Act?
1. Students’ answers will vary. Students who support changes to the Electronic Communications
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the security of Americans. Some students might believe that such orders should be completely
2. Legislation (known as the Email Privacy Act) proposed to amend the ECPA was intended to
tighten restrictions on how law enforcement and national security agencies could access email and
other electronic messages in investigations—no matter how old those messages are. In 2013, a
version of the bill passed the Senate Judiciary Committee before being put on legislative hold. In
3. Some media organization might support Microsoft’s argument that the reach of a warrant issued by
a U.S. court does not extend beyond the United States because those organizations are interested in
protecting their own international operations. If U.S. courts were given jurisdiction over data held
in other countries, media companies might be subjected to limits on their operations in foreign