Information Privacy - Ethics for the Information Age - page 259

clerk refuses to accept your application without the field filled in. You ask to speak to
the manager, and the clerk says the manager is not available. Would it be wrong in this
situation to fill in a fake Social Security number?
40. A company discovers that some of its proprietary information has been revealed in
Internet chat rooms. The disclosure of this information results in a substantial drop in
the price of the company's shares. The company provides Internet service providers with
the screen names of the people who posted the confidential information. It asks the ISPs
to disclose the actual identities of these people. Should the ISPs comply with this request?
Explain your reasoning. (This scenario is adapted from an actual event [72].)
41. Music files downloaded from Apple's iTunes Store have the purchaser's name and email
address embedded in them [73]. Conceivably, Apple could use this information to learn
how much file sharing goes on (e.g., it could find out that a month after Ann purchases
a song there are 10 computers that have a copy of Ann's music file).
By including personal information in music files it sells, has Apple violated the
privacy rights of its customers?
42. Google Glass provides an information display in eyeglass frames, making it easier for
people to view information while on the go. Instead of having to look at the screen of
a tablet or smartphone, Google Glass users can see text and images displayed in their
field of vision. Google Glass also contains a camera and a microphone, enabling users
to take photos and shoot videos from a first-person perspective. Do you believe Google
Glass represents a significant new threat to privacy? Under what circumstances, if any, is
it inappropriate for someone to wear Google Glass?
43. Homer Gaines used Google Glass while making a marriage proposal to his girlfriend,
Tami Stillwell. “I would not have been able to pull off that level of spontaneity with any
other device and instantly share it with the world. Glass gave me the ability to share with
everyone that special moment from my point of view—the surprise on her face, the way
she jumped around, the ring on her finger and the tears of joy in her eyes” [74]. What
are your reactions to this episode?
44. What special responsibilities do computer professionals have with respect to under-
standing and protecting the privacy rights of their fellow citizens?
In-Class Exercises
45. What does your “ladder of privacy” look like? How does it compare to those of your
classmates?
46. Give an example of a piece of information that a person should not have to reveal to
anyone else. Give an example of a piece of information that society should be able to
demand that a person reveal.
47. Divide the class into two groups. The first group should come up with evidence sup-
porting the proposition “We live in a global village.” The second group should come up
with evidence supporting the proposition “We live in a world of strangers.”
48. When you purchase a product or service using a credit card, the merchant has infor-
mation linking you to the transaction. Divide the class into two groups (pro and con)
to debate the proposition that merchants should be required to follow an opt-in policy.