Joey Beasley
CSCI 325
Henderson

Ethics Paper

In the vast world of the Applied Computing major and its related jobs, there are multiple rules and ethics that one should follow, no matter what career path they chose to follow. One field that this major covers is web page design. Web page design has many different purposes, formats it can utilize, and multiple organizations it can support or raise awareness for. And with all those usages, web page design has many different ethics and standards that users should abide by, along with many responsibilities the designers must strive to follow.

One of the biggest ethical dilemmas of web page design is security and respecting the privacy of users. Many websites, consensually or not, will gather information from the user based on their activity. The websites often use this data to recommend items of interest to the user, or send information about their viewing and spending habits to the servers. The practice has grown so commonplace that an article from Business News Daily reports, “So much consumer data has been captured and analyzed that governments are crafting strict data and consumer privacy regulations designed to give individuals a modicum of control over how their data is used.” (Freedman). The ethicality of this situation has grown very controversial in recent years, with some websites not only extracting info from users against their will, but also analyzing data that is supposed to be private. Many companies and groups have come under fire for this in recent years, with one recent example being Twitter, who was recently sued for $5 million over leaking information from over 200 million users, which hackers easily managed to get ahold of. The lawsuit stated, “This is extremely problematic because it evidences that Twitter (which, to this day has inexplicably failed to notify or contact the victims of this particular API exploitation) refuses to acknowledge the seriousness of what has occurred.” (Bhaimiya). Twitter is not the only platform where this is a problem, as according to an article with information from ForgeRock, “the numbers in 2022 have soared past this range with about 41% of all leaked data coming from social media leaks and data theft.” (Muhammad). All of this info has made people grow even more weary about the possibility of their information being leaked or even stolen if it falls into the wrong hands.

If I have to design a web page that has the ability to gather data from users, I would be sure to place a few procedures into play. The first thing I want to do is be direct and honest with the user about our data policy. When users first enter the website, I would have a text box and form show up explaining to them what specific data can be gathered from them, nothing more, nothing less, and ask if they agree to these terms. If, and only if they consent, the website will analyze only the data and user activity that was listed to them. Since I have plenty of experience with web page design, I feel like I can make the system do just that, and be sure to assure the user that their data is in good, safe hands and that we would never abuse anyone’s trust by misusing said information being given to us. To prepare for this, I will research not only how data is gathered, but also which companies are following this approach, in case they need me to make a website or improve their platform for them.

Both the ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct and the IEEE Code of Ethics have segments discussing the rights and principles behind privacy. Section 1.6 of the ACM is about respecting privacy and states, “Computing professionals should only use personal information for legitimate ends and without violating the rights of individuals and groups.” (ACM). Section 7.8 I 1 of the IEEE Code of Ethics aims for the owners of a website or domain to agree “to hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public, to strive to comply with ethical design and sustainable development practices, to protect the privacy of others, and to disclose promptly factors that might endanger the public or the environment” (IEEE). Ecclesiastes 5:5 states, “It is better not to promise anything than to promise something and not do it.” We can apply this verse to user agreements about privacy. It is one thing to gather information, but it is an even worse thing to break your promise to respect their information by using it for any other gain.

One of the most important ethics I will strive to follow and enforce in the world of web page design is respecting users’ privacy and being direct and honest with said usage. Going by these rules not only protects their information, but also makes sure that they can trust me and whatever business I am working for. Privacy and preventing personal information is something that has become an even bigger problem in recent years, with the ethicality being questioned every day. Simply asking for consent to access this information and promising to never use it irresponsibly is a significant way to deal with this problem. The more we do it, the more people will not have to worry about their secure information being leaked. This will also encourage more organizations to follow these standards too, resulting in a much more safe and trustworthy flow in the world wide web.</body>

Works Cited

ACM Code 2018 Task Force. “The Code Affirms an Obligation of Computing Professionals to Use Their Skills for the Benefit of Society.” Code of Ethics, https://www.acm.org/code-of-ethics.

Bhaimiya, Sawdah. “A New Yorker Is Suing Twitter for $5 Million over a Data Leak That Researchers Say Exposed the Information of More than 200 Million Users.” Business Insider, Business Insider, https://www.businessinsider.com/twitter-sued-5-million-data-leak-exposing-personal-user-info-2023-1.

Freedman, Max. “Businesses Are Collecting Data. How Are They Using It?” Business News Daily, https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/10625-businesses-collecting-data.html.

“IEEE Code of Ethics.” IEEE, https://www.ieee.org/about/corporate/governance/p7-8.html.

Muhammad, Zia. “41% Of Leaked Data Comes from Social Media According to This Study.” Digital Information World, 2 Aug. 2022, https://www.digitalinformationworld.com/2022/08/41-of-leaked-data-comes-from-social.html.