Ethical Issues in Cybersecurity

Ethical Issues in Cybersecurity

Ethical issues in cybersecurity are prevalent because of fast technological advancements. Therefore, cybersecurity professionals play an important role in protecting sensitive information, data, and systems.

Mass surveillance always results in serious ethical harm, whether conducted by corporations or government bodies. The violation of privacy rights is a major concern in mass surveillance.

The exposure of technology has also weakened the privacy of people because personal data is available everywhere. When people think that they are being observed, it makes them conscious to change the way they act and behave.

Constant monitoring also limits their creativity, autonomy, and the ways people act. Surveillance also targets the marginalized, which often results in discrimination and inequalities. Professional code ethics demands careful consideration during mass surveillance to avoid violation of privacy rights whether mass data collection is for the public interest.

Trust is another ethical issue in cybersecurity and mass surveillance, whether conducted by government bodies or corporations. For instance, surveillance by corporations or government bodies develops an environment of fear and suspicion.

Mass surveillance erodes trust because people consider that their personal data can be exploited without their consent. The lack of trust may result in societal harm and reduce public interest in cyber security measures.

It is the ethical responsibility of the government and corporations to conduct mass surveillance with transparency. For instance, the government should explain the purpose of data collection clearly. Mass surveillance with trust may result in oppression rather than protection.

Emerging Technologies

Artificial intelligence, machine learning, and blockchain are emerging technologies that can provide potential benefits to improve efficiency and security. On the contrary, it can also raise serious ethical concerns such as immutability. For instance, in Blockchain, immutability may help in keeping data with high accuracy.

On the contrary, once the data is entered incorrectly, it cannot be changed. It raises serious ethical concerns for cyber security professionals to make space for data rectification in case of incorrect data entries.

Blockchain technology prioritizes transparency that can conflict with the privacy rights of consumers. It can also lead to ethical challenges, especially in those industries where sensitive data needs to be confidential.

Artificial intelligence and machine learning also introduce diverse ethical concerns such as accountability and biases. Primarily, both technologies depend on historical data to guide algorithms.

For instance, if the given data has some biases, artificial intelligence can exacerbate the included biases. These biases can result in serious ethical outcomes such as unfair profiling or decisions, especially in the healthcare, finance, and law sectors.

The machine learning system also raises questions of accountability when operating autonomously. For instance, who is responsible for harm when the autonomous system makes a mistake. Therefore, it is the ethical responsibility of cybersecurity professionals to navigate the gray areas and ensure that emerging technology can be used with any potential harm.

The utilization of emerging technology requires a commitment to the C-I-A triad to ensure ethical integrity. In addition, it also requires human-centered ethical principles such as trust, autonomy, and fairness to perform effectively.

Therefore, cyber security professionals need to have full knowledge about the potential harms of these technologies. Cybersecurity professionals have greater responsibility for policy implementation, policy practices, and the protection of individuals’ rights along with technical solutions.

In the context of mass surveillance and emerging technologies, ethical considerations are complex because they increase the risk of privacy violations and algorithm biases. Therefore, cyber security professionals need to advocate policies and prioritize ethical decision-making to make the digital environment secure.