Computer Laboratory – Course material 2007–08: Professional Practice and Ethics

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Professional Practice and Ethics

This course is taken by Part IA (50% Option) students.

Lecturer: Dr R.C. Jennings

No. of lectures: 8

Aims

This course will develop the ethical foundations of good professional practice in computing and generally look at the people side of IT. It will provide a basic survey of ethical theories and discuss the role of professional organisations in maintaining good practice, both in general and then specifically in the computing industry. It will then consider legislation that applies in the computing industry, including three major areas of ethical concern in computing: computer cracking, data privacy and software ownership.

Lectures

Ethical theory. Basic questions in ethics. Survey of ethical theories: authoritarian, intuitionist, egoist, utilitarian, deontologist. Advantages and disadvantages of the two main theories: utilitarian and deontological. [1.2 lectures]
Local ethics. Rules and Regulations made by the Information Syndicate. [0.3 lectures]
Professions and professional ethics. Origin and purpose of professions. Internal regulation versus external regulation. Varieties of professional responsibility. Professional organisations: ethics and codes of conduct. [1.5 lectures]
Relevant legislation: Health and Safety. Potential problems in the use of VDUs, keyboards and workplaces. [0.3 lectures]
Relevant legislation: Disability Discrimination Act. Ensuring accessibility of Web pages. [0.2 lectures]
Relevant legislation: Computer misuse. Computer hacking, computer cracking: when does the fun become crime? Computer Misuse Act 1990 and Police and Justice Act 2006. Difficulties with traditional legal concepts. The Human side of security - social engineering. [1.5 lectures]
Relevant legislation: Privacy and data protection. What is Privacy? Computer data and human dignity. The problematic status of information stored on computers. The Data Protection Act 1998. [1.5 lectures]
Relevant legislation: Property ownership. Theories of property and ownership: Patent, Copyright, and trade secrets. Ownership of computer software: a new problem in intellectual property rights. [1.5 lectures]

Objectives

At the end of the course students should

be able to recognise and distinguish different kinds of ethical arguments
know why professions have codes of conduct, and what is included in the British Computer Society code of conduct
recognise potential health and safety issues in computing
understand the need for making web pages accessible
appreciate the dangers in computer cracking and know the contents of the Computer Misuse Act of 1990, including changes introduced by the Police and Justice Act 2006
be able to explain the nature of privacy and how it is protected by the Data Protection Act of 1998
be able to justify the existence of property laws and explain the legal mechanisms which protect software as property
know the disadvantages of private ownership of software and the legal mechanisms by which private ownership can be blocked

Recommended reading

* Kling, R. (1991). Computerization and controversy: value conflicts and social choices. London: Academic Press (2nd ed.).
Forester, T. & Morrison, P. (1990). Computer ethics: cautionary tales and ethical dilemmas in computing. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Johnson, D.G. (1985). Computer ethics. Englewood, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Johnson, D.G. & Snapper, J.W. (1985). Ethical issues in the use of computers. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

WWW pages:

Centre for Computing and Social Responsibility (CCSR):
http://www.ccsr.cse.dmu.ac.uk/

Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility (CPSR):
http://www.cpsr.org/

Next: Part IB Assessed Exercise Up: Easter Term 2008: Part Previous: Computer Perspectives Contents