The information age has completely changed how people conduct business is in the current world. Every day, many people use the internet to disclose information about themselves, but with little knowledge of how others use the same information without their consent to conduct business. The increasing number of social networks further puts one’s private life at risk. Yet, the right to privacy is a fundamental democratic right. IT professionals thus have the moral responsibility to protect those whose very lives to depend on IT by assuring them privacy (Spinello, 2011). What does privacy mean in the information age? Ruth Davison defines privacy as the right to secrecy, anonymity, and solitude (cited in Spinello, 2011). According to Spinello (2011), information privacy encompasses privacy issues surrounding the collection, use, and dissemination of information about an individual. Information privacy grants an individual the right to control the disclosure and access to one’s personal information (Spinello, 2011). As IT professionals struggle to assure internet users of their privacy, they face many leadership challenges ranging from ethics, morals, and policy framework.
IT professionals are tasked with the responsibility of ensuring that users get access to whatever information they require to run their businesses. At the same time, IT professionals must assure internet users of their privacy. Information privacy vs. information assurance is a leadership issue that IT professionals have to deal with resulting in an ethical dilemma. Professional ethics dictate that an IT professional does what is best for the benefit of all (Reynolds, 2011). IT professionals thus have to play the lead role of monitoring and regulating how people use the information on the internet to assure users of their privacy. This is usually done through encryption, which converts electronic information to a form that can only be understood by intended users (Reynolds, 2011). While cryptography is a sure solution to internet privacy risk, encryption policies that allow the government access to part of user’s information is an ethical issue that IT professionals have to sort out.
Even as IT professionals struggle to strike a balance between information assurance and internet privacy, they also have to deal with laws and line authorities. There are so many laws governing internet privacy, but the implementation of these laws is a leadership issue that IT professionals have to cope with. Implementation of laws and policies governing privacy is in the hands of the governing authorities and not IT professionals. Some of these laws advocate for government access to private communication, denying internet users the right to privacy. In this regard, Spinello (2011) noted that “without privacy, life is full of “anticipatory conformity” and is “less spontaneous and more measured” (p. 143). IT professionals, therefore, has to provide leadership and work together with line authorities in assuring internet privacy. It is their leadership obligation to assure users of their privacy in fast-paced cyberspace.
Information privacy and security issues have been at loggerheads for decades. While encryption is supposed to protect information users by making their communications private, clipper chip technology proved otherwise as it made this very information accessible to the federal government. This was all in the name of security reasons. All the clipper series violated the right to information privacy, yet privacy is a fundamental human right. The First Amendment governs free speech and suggests that people should be free to communicate without fears of the government spying on their communication (Landau, 1994). Key escrow by government encryption agencies is thus perceived as a violation of human rights by campaigners of privacy. However, with the technological advancement witnessed in the clipper chip series, it became evident that with a proper regulatory and ethical framework, encryption offers a solution to internet privacy. The future of internet privacy lies in encryption and other code-based technologies (Dirk van & Jacques, 2010). Only through encryption will internet communication between parties remain private.
With most companies and organizations turning to e-commerce as the fastest means to reach the global market, internet privacy cannot be underrated. Encryption ensures that such important transactions are kept private and only accessed by intended users. Many people feel insecure to provide very confidential details of their credit cards over the internet. If only they would be assured of their privacy through encryption, then e-commerce would be a booming business. Generally, encryption is a technology that can provide privacy in all aspects of internet usage. It ensures that people communicate freely without fear of someone hacking into their private information.
Despite its benefits, too much privacy in cyberspace can be dangerous. If internet communication is not monitored in any way, criminals may have an easy way out. Terrorists can use encrypted messages to plan their terrorist attacks. It is believed that the September 11 bombing must have been planned through the use of encryption, which did not leave out any clue to the security intelligence (Ranstorp, 2006). Encryption would also work against information assurance (Landau, 1994). Imagine if all the information on the internet was encrypted. Users would be denied their right to information. In general, internet privacy has its pros and cons that must be looked at closely even as we advocate for it. As Baase (2008) maintains, the internet is “a gift of fire” that has to be handled with caution.
References
Baase, S (2008). Gift of fire: Social, legal, and ethical issues for computing and the internet (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River: Pearson.
Dirk van, R. & Jacques, B (2010). Trust and privacy in the future internet- a research perspective. IDIS, Vol. 3, pp. 397-404.
Landau, S. et-al (1994). Codes, Keys and Conflicts: Issues in the U.S. Crypto Policy. Report of a Special Panel of the ACM (Association for computing Machinery, Inc.) U.S. Public Policy Committee. Web.
Ranstorp, M. (2006). The virtual sanctuary of Al-Queda and terrorism in an age of globalization. In Eriksson, J. & Giacomello, G. (2007). International relations and security in the digital age. London:Routledge.
Reynolds, G. (2011). Ethics in Information Technology. Stanford Connecticut, USA : Course Technology.
Spinello, R. (2011). Cyberethics: Morality and law in cyberspace (4th ed.). Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett Pub.