Legal & Professional Issues in Computing (CSCI13C) Revision Flashcards

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the key ethical, legal, and professional concepts from Lectures 1-10 of the CSCI13C module.

Ethics

The study of what it means to "do the right thing" — a set of beliefs about right and wrong behavior within a society, or the code of morals of a person, group, or profession.

Law

A system of rules a country or community recognises as regulating its members’ actions, enforced through a controlling authority by imposing penalties.

Subjective relativism

An ethical theory stating there are no universal moral norms of right and wrong; different people or groups can hold opposite views and both be 'right'.

Utilitarianism

An ethical theory where an action is good if its benefits exceed its harms, following the 'Greatest Happiness Principle' to increase total happiness for those affected.

Professional ethics

The responsibilities and conduct of a professional toward customers, clients, co-workers, employers, and those affected by their technical products and services.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

An umbrella term for computer systems that can perform tasks which historically required human intelligence, such as recognizing speech, making decisions, or spotting patterns.

Informed consent

When users are genuinely aware of what information is collected about them and how it will be used.

Secondary use

The act of using personal information for a different purpose than the one it was originally given for.

Opt-in

A privacy policy where the default is 'out' and an organization may use data only if the user explicitly permits it, usually by ticking a box.

Encryption

Technology that transforms data into a form that is meaningless to anyone who intercepts it, serving as a key privacy-protecting tool.

The Harm Principle

John Stuart Mill's principle stating that power can be used over an individual in a civilised society only to prevent harm to others.

Intellectual Property (IP)

Intangible creations of the mind, such as inventions, writing, art, and designs, that are protected primarily by patent and copyright law.

Fair Use

A legal doctrine allowing limited use of copyrighted material without permission by balancing the creator’s interests against the public interest.

Plagiarism

The act of using someone else’s work, ideas, or words without providing proper credit, considered academic dishonesty.

Cybercrime

Crime committed using computers, networks, and the internet, involving techniques like malware, phishing, and hacking.

Hacking

The act of gaining illegal or unauthorised access to a file, computer, or network.

Legacy system

An out-of-date hardware or software system that is still in use, often patched with special interfaces to communicate with modern systems.

Therac-25

A software-controlled radiation-therapy machine that caused severe injuries and deaths due to massive radiation overdoses and software design failures.

Outsourcing

A phenomenon where a company pays another company for services instead of performing those tasks itself.

Telecommuting

Working from home or on the move using a computer electronically linked to the professional's workplace.

Digital divide

The gap between those who have access to modern information and communications technology and those who do not.

Luddite

A person opposed to new technology; historically, English workers who destroyed mill machinery they believed threatened their jobs.