Securing the Electronic Frontier
The paradox of how to secure individuals and organizations' right to access the Internet vs. securing personal and corporate data and identities is a particularly complex and challenging issue. The ethicacy of this paradox is most present in the differences between encryption and Pretty Good Privacy (PGP). Too open of standards and governance policies on these areas will often lead to large scale data breaches, as many organizations presume they have greater security over their data than is actually the case (Mikko, 2010). When security guidelines and initiatives are too restrictive, organizations cannot accomplish their objectives either. Making this paradox complex is the ethicacy of asking people and organizations for passwords and access to their accounts (Spinello, 2004). The ethics of trespass vs. legitimate access becomes all the more critical when the complexity, pace and severity of computer fraud perpetrated by globally-based gangs that are well-financed (Mikko,...
This is dangerous and is one of the strongest catalysts for global governments increasingly attempting to get password access to user's accounts globally. Crime syndicates and gangs, in addition to unscrupulous marketers all attempt to also gain access to potential customers' account through the use of spam and spiders. Both of these forms of communication are clearly forms of electronic trespass. They violate the ethical boundaries of individual freedoms as defined by Kantian, Utilitarian, and Social Contract Theories (Spinello, 2004). Bots, spiders and spam are also unethical from the standpoint of deliberately changing the context of value exchanged and the intentional misuse of the Internet to defraud…
