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Abstract
Organized into five main sections, this paper provides an introduction to cyberethics-an interdisciplinary field of applied ethics. In Section 1, definitions of some key terms, such as cyberethics and cybertechnology, are proposed and a brief description of the historical development of the field of cyberethics is provided. Section 2 examines the question of whether cyberethics issues are unique or special ethical issues. In Section 3, cyberethics issues are examined from three distinct perspectives involving applied ethics: professional, philosophical, and descriptive. Section 4 briefly analyzes the standard methodological framework used in applied-ethics research, and it shows why that framework is not adequate for identifying some kinds of cyberethics issues. In Section 5, a comprehensive and unified methodological framework, which incorporates the expertise of computer scientists, information professionals, philosophers, and social scientists, is proposed as an alternative to the traditional method.
1. What Is Cyberethics? Some Basic Definitions and a Brief Historical Sketch
Cyberethics is a field of applied ethics that examines moral, legal, and social issues involving cybertechnology. As such, cyberethics analyzes the impact that cybertechnology has on our social, legal, and moral systems. It also evaluates the social policies and laws that have been framed in response to issues generated by the development and use of cybertechnology. Thus an adequate analysis of cyberethics requires an understanding of what is meant by the term "cybertechnology."
Cybertechnology refers to a wide range of computing and communications devices, from stand-alone computers to "connected" or networked computing and communications technologies.1 These technologies include, but need not be limited to, electronic hand-held devices, personal computers (desktops and laptops), mainframe computers, and so forth. Networked devices can be connected directly to the Internet or they can be connected to other devices through one or more privately owned computer networks such as LANs (Local Area Networks) and WANs (Wide Area Networks). Unlike privately owned WANs and LANs, the Internet-i.e., the network of interconnected computer networks- is generally considered to be a "public network." It is public in the sense that much of the information available resides in "public space" and is thus available to anyone.2 Although Internet-related technologies are perhaps the most common and well-known examples of cybertechnology, it is important to reiterate that cybertechnology includes the entire range of...