Ch 8 - Ethical, Social, and Political Issues in E-Commerce

• Because e-commerce is such a new field, there really aren't a lot of set standards for ethical or socially correct ways of doing things. This has raised many issues that are discussed in detail in this chapter.
• Issues
• Information Rights
• This has to do with the rights of individuals to ensure their privacy and not allow their personal information to be collected somewhere on the Internet.
• Property Rights
• This has to do with the fact that things on the internet can easily be copied and redistributed. This infringes on the traditional intellectual property rights of individuals.
• Governance
• This is the issue of whether or not the Internet should be governed by public laws. And if they should, who has the authority to uphold those laws in various places throughout the world?
• Public Safety and Welfare
• This has to do with the fact that some online content may potentially pose a threat to public safety and welfare.
• The chapter went on to discuss how to identify these ethical, social, and political dilemmas.
• The chapter went through a long process of how to identify these dilemmas and fully analyze them.
• In order to fully understand the issues about online privacy, the chapter described some basic concepts that must first be understood.
• Privacy - the moral right of individuals to be left alone
• Information Privacy - the claim that certain information should not be collected, and also that individuals should have control over the use of their personal information.
• Due Process - informed consent, and opt-in/opt-out policies.
• There are several different methods to protect your online privacy.
• Legal Protection - includes all laws and such that ensure privacy.
• Industry Self-Regulation - seek to gain voluntary adherence to industry privacy guidelines.
• Privacy-enhancing Technologies - various technologies that help to ensure privacy.
• Various forms of intellectual property
• Copyright Law - protects original forms of expression
  
• Patent Law - grants owner exclusive monopoly on ideas behind an invention
• Trademark Protection - ensures public gets what it pays for
• Evolution of Governance over time
• Government control
• Privatization
• Self-regulation
• Government regulation
• Why taxation raises issues
• How to tax remote sales
• Current taxation system does not carry over into Internet
• Major public safety issues in e-commerce
• Protecting children from pornography
• Restricting access to cigarettes, alcohol, and drugs.