5: Issues in Computing

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As computing and networking resources have become more and more an integral part of business, they have also become a target of criminals. Organizations must be vigilant with the way they protect their resources.

The same holds true for us personally: as digital devices become more and more intertwined with our lives, it becomes crucial for us to understand how to protect ourselves. Information systems have had an impact far beyond the world of business. New technologies create new situations that we have never dealt with before. How do we handle the new capabilities that these devices empower us with? What new laws are going to be needed to protect us from ourselves?

This chapter will kick off with a discussion of the impact of information systems on how we behave (ethics). This will be followed by the new legal structures being put in place, with a focus on intellectual property and privacy.

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Objectives

Upon successful completion of this chapter, you will be able to:

• Describe what the term information systems ethics means;
• Explain what a code of ethics is and describe the advantages and disadvantages;
• Define the term intellectual property and explain the protections provided by copyright, patent, and trademark; and
• Describe the challenges that information technology brings to individual privacy.

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"The most confident critics are generally those who know the least about the matter critized."

 

Banner image by Tumisu, via Pixabay

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