Legal + Ethical Aspects

Computer Crime

• computer crime - broad criminal activity targeting or using (comm. tools) computers OR using computers as a medium (storage devices)

  • EG: cyberattacks, data leaks, using computers to store harmful or stolen info

• convention on cybercrime - international council determining cybercrime

  • EG: illegal access, interception, undermining availability

• encourages law enforcement on cybercrimes

  • THINK: being unable to apprehend cybercriminals in foreign countries

• law enforcement challenges:

  • lack of expertise

  • expensive resources

  • foreign countries

• challenges → increased cybercriminals + victims

• broad profiles (no cybercriminal databases), but cybercriminals tend to be

  • young

  • tech-saavy

  • part of large networks

• victims fostered by a lack of resources (tech, physical, human)

• victims tend not to report cybercrimes

  • lack of faith in law enforcement

  • care about reputation

    • THINK: data breaches could ward off customers

• encourage management ←> law enforcement

  • criminal investigation + compliance

Intellectual Property

• intellectual property can include:

  • software - can be commercial or for private use

  • databases - collection of unique data

    • EG: research for statistics

  • digital content/work

  • algorithm (EG: cryptohtaphy)

• copyright - protects expression of idea BUT NOT the idea itself

  • EG: You can copyright a specific type of pizza, but you cannot copyright the entire recipe of pizza

  • allows same idea but different form

• exclusive rights (others can’t do w/o permission)

  • reproduction

  • modification

  • distribution

  • public performance + display

• patent - sole owner of an idea

  • utility: new process/machine

  • design: new original, ornamental design

  • plant: discovery of plants

• trademark - exclusive, distinguishing, representative symbol

• prevents others from using something similar (i.e bootlegging)

  • does NOT prevent distribution of same idea

• US Digital Millennium Copyright Act - nobody can access/copy a work for online copyrightable work

• Criminalizes + civil penalizes exploiters

• Exemptions:

  • Fair Use

  • Reverse engineering

  • Encryption research

  • Security testing

• Privacy asks should data be visible to others?

  • NOT Confidentiality; controls who can see what

• Big Data which seeks to analyze data w/o user permission

• Privacy Protection:

  • Technical approach: Using the technical mechanisms used by the database

    • Social Media approach: who can see what

      • EG: Privacy settings

    • Data Organization: ???

  • Policy approach: Informed consent for data collection

    • Governance: management oversignt of data

    • Ownership + authorship: Who owns their data

Ethics

• Ethics: Moral principles asking what is right/wrong

• Ethical challenges:

  • Scale of activities impossibly large

  • Creation of novel technologies w/o rules

  • Owner of information?

  • Who regulates?

• Ethical duty as a professional may conflict with employer loyalty (power dynamics)

  • Whistleblowing

• Whistleblowing can harm both the organization but also the person

  • Must protect the person

• Algorithms can be subject to bias

  • EG: Denying loans to women

• Code of Conduct benefits

  • Is a positive stimulus

  • Be educational

  • Provides support

  • Enhances image

Summary

• Cybercrimes

  • Victims + Cybercriminals

  • Law Enforcement

• Intellectual Property

  • Copyright

  • Patent

  • Trademark

  • Privacy + Protection

• Ethics

  • Challenges

• Ethics + Professionalism