Ethical Issues of Internet Privacy

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Table of Contents

Methodology
Introduction
Observation
Analysis of observation
Conclusion
Works cited

Methodology

There are various methods of collecting data in research. Some of the methods include the use of interview schedules, where respondents are asked questions and the respondents respond directly while the researcher records the answers. The use of questionnaires is also another method. This is where the researcher drafts questions on paper and distributes them to the respondents so as to answer them. This can either be mail questionnaire whereby questions are mailed to the concerned respondents and they answer them and mail back to the researcher. This however is not a reliable way of collecting data. The letters can get lost on the way or misplaced and may not reach the intended persons. It is also the most expensive method of collecting data since the researcher has to attach stamps which will be used to email back the respondent’s answers. If the researcher does not attach the stamps the respondents would not likely spend his money on another person’s work.

Direct questionnaire is another method where the researchers distribute to the respondents and wait to be filled and collect them for analysis. It is the best method though the respondents may not be willing to fill in the blank spaces. Some of the respondents might be illiterate or have no time to fill the questions asked. It is also an expensive method because the researcher has to print the questions to be asked. Another method of data collection is observation method. It is the most convenient method of collecting data. This is because the researcher does not have to bother anybody when conducting a research. This involves behaviors being observed by researcher and recorded. It does not involve direct contact with the respondents. The researcher establishes the target population where research will be conducted. Every activity that takes place is observed by the researcher (Salehnia, p. 158).

Introduction

A research was conducted concerning ethical issues of internet privacy. This consists of individuals using internet in a confidential way. It involves not exposing so much information about oneself through the internet. It has become great concern for people to be sensitized on the importance to keep their information private when using the internet services. This involves being private on social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and many other chat services. The information of individuals should not be revealed so much. This is done in order to discourage internet crimes. The personal information which is provided should be protected.

This is done by implementing various policies on the information privacy. Personal information should not be used for anything either for criminal intentions or not without his/her consent. This personal information may include bank details and employment details. It may also include health and other personal details. Hackers normally get their way to this information. They then use this information to commit crimes and for malicious purposes. They can attack specific persons using the illegally obtain details. This causes people to fear using certain sites. They fear performing transactions on shopping websites (Kizza, p. 97).

This is because they do not want to send their credit card numbers and other information over the web. Therefore authentication should be done to ensure that only authorized users of any system are allowed. Measures should therefore be put in place to ensure that the private information is transmitted securely. This is to make sure that the information is not intercepted or interrupted. Mailing history can be used to track the activities of company employees. Most the companies use employee monitoring systems. This system keeps a log of all activities performed by each employee. This intrudes on their privacy because even their personal emails are traced. An IP masking software can be used to prevent these intrusions.

A research was conducted in a college setting. It is a social institution where different people behave differently. It’s a college where all the students are in session. There are those who are studying different courses ranging from diplomas, degrees, masters and PhDs. Studies were going on well and everybody is going on with their chores as usual. Some students are running up and down to make sure that they do not miss their classes. Observation method was chosen because it is the simplest method to use hence it would be easier and faster to get the data needed. It also enables the researcher to get first-hand information hence there is no need to rely on others to get the data. Though it also has various demerits to the researcher, it was the best method to use. Some of its demerits include: its time consuming & requires small sample which may not actually give accurate results (Azari, p. 178).

However despite the demerits the researcher was able to overcome them by making sure that he gets the accurate answers as possible and uses the shortest time skillfully. Observation was seen to be the best method of collecting data because it was a school setting where students from different backgrounds were in attendance. The research was carried out in the computer laboratory. The reason why the researcher chose to conduct his research in the computer lab is to enable him to collect data that is relevant to the topic. It is also a place where you can find most of the students and everybody concentrates on whatever they are doing. The researcher cannot be found easily by the students in the computer lab. Students attend labs at intervals because the students are in the lessons differently at different times. The timetable is different for students hence when they are free they attend labs to do their classwork and others browse in different social sites.

The researcher sat on one of the computers in the lab in order to get good climes of what the students are doing in the lab. Everybody was busy in the lab and all the eyes were on the computer. The lab is very quiet but the sounds of some people murmuring were evident. The people in the lab consist of students only. An outsider or anybody who is not a student is not allowed to enter the computer lab unless he/she possesses a college identity card. Since the researcher is not a student in the college, he had to seek permission from the college administration and was granted. The desktops are wide about 17inches wide hence any other person can access what the other person is doing. The computers are in straight rows (Himma, p. 142).

The computer lab is very large and accommodates up to two hundred students. All students have their own computers but some of them share maybe because they were working on research and two of them have to consult. Not all of the computers are occupied but at times they are almost full. The seats in the lab are made of leather but some of them are broken on the backside. The air conditioners generate good fresh air which enables students to be active and not dumpy. And the place smelt nice though.

Observation

The researcher observed that the students in the computer lab do various things in the library. The students are of different ages. Some are aged between 19 years old to 45 years approximately. But the majority of students are youths who are partaking in undergraduate studies. Some of the older students are studying the master programs’ or even PhDs. The researcher also observed that the majority of students attend computer labs for social networking. Majority of the students were smiling as they type on the keyboard, which is a clear indication that they are chatting with some people. The assumption the researcher made because a person cannot smile when doing some serious class assignment. While those people of older age are involved in doing some research on the classwork by the seriousness in their faces. It is also shown by the way they are involved in taking short notes from the computer.

The researcher also observed that majority of those in the labs in terms of gender are ladies and they were Christians by the look of mode dress. However there were Muslims who wore scuffs and Muslim gears but in minimal number. Most of the students wore casual wear. This includes the jeans and t-shirts. Majority of ladies also wore trousers and minority wore skirts. Where students imitate one another in the way they wear clothes. Fashion in wear seems to be considered seriously in the college. All the students try to dress to impress especially those on youthful stage. Older people seemed to wear official wear. Some of them put on their ties which is a sign of some of them holding working jobs and only coming to class on part-time basis (Stair, Reynold and Reynolds, p. 109).

All the students appear to be white in terms of race but there were a minimal number of African American students. In about an hour when the researcher was in the library, he noticed that most of the students who are using computers did not mind hiding the information being displayed on the desktop. In fact he noticed one of the students who were shopping online who did not mind hiding her credit numbers. The numbers could be assessed easily. This is because they could not adhere to internet privacy or they have no idea of what they were getting themselves into. The researcher also found out that most students do not log off their social networking sites. Some could find out that their class time was over and they would rush to their class forgetting to end whatever they were doing on the computer.

The researcher also found out that the students of the same age sitting next to each other. He observed one of the students who were friends requesting another one to move to another chair to sit next to his friend. The lab technician was also keener in watching out those who were consulting loudly. It was discovered that middle-aged men were requested at most times to lower their voices more than ladies and older men. In fact, at one point two male students were sent outside for being rude to the lab technician. This however shows that boys were ruder than girls even though girls were more in the computer lab than boys.

Analysis of observation

Since the middle-aged students outnumbered the older students, focus of the study will only be based on the majority of the students. Analysis will focus on gender, socialization, social learning and ethnicity. Men and women tend to regroup together and do most of the things when they are together. As found out by the researcher, ladies tend to share most of the things when they were browsing in the computer lab. This however enables them to learn from each other in terms of learning and daily activities in school. It was also found out that ladies are the ones who forget most to log off their computers. This however shows that degree to which women tend to forget than men are higher.

The students tend to learn more through peer group socialization. This is seen in terms of fashion in which students tend to wear. Most of the clothes which they wear tend to be the same. Peer group socialization can either lead one to be good or take up bad morals depending on which type of peers we associate with. A group of bodies who were chased away by the lab technicians has learned bad behavior either from one of themselves. The students also learn behaviors through social learning process. This is where individuals learn behaviors through friends they communicate either through social networking on the internet. Some have learned about social sites on the computer through being demonstrated to by their friends. College is a social institution where different students from different backgrounds meet and share various ideas. In the process of being together some students are re-socialized and they learn behaviors that were not in the family institution. The institutional norms enable the students to respect one another and therefore bring order to the college. This is mostly displayed in the computer lab where students are orderly (Kimmel, p. 75).

Conclusion

The college rules also shape the behaviors of the students in the school. Rules act as social control tool which helps shape the behaviors of human beings. Durkheim argued that human being is a social animal and they are bound to make mistakes. There should be rules put in place to guide the behaviors of that individual. Various students have not learned the ethical issues of internet privacy. Internet crimes take place every day because people do not know this policy. However, college students need to be taught more about the importance of keeping the information that reveals much about them to be kept more secret. The researcher’s observation also reveals that people of the same age tend to share various ideas in terms of mode of dress and the way they imitate one another. The people we associate with and those we come across every day shape our behaviors greatly. People behave differently in the presence of others. Behaviors also are observed in society through a way of modeling. We try to imitate our models and in the process, we take up their habits.

Works cited

Azari, Rasool. Current security management and ethical issues of information technology. Hershey: Idea Group Inc (IGI), 2003.
Himma, Einar. Internet security: hacking, counterhacking, and society. Sudbury: Jones& Bartlett Learning, 2007.
Kimmel, Allan J. Ethical issues in behavioral research: basic and applied perspectives. 4th ed. New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell, 2007.
Kizza, Joseph Migga. Ethical and Social Issues in the Information Age. 4th ed. New York: Springer, 2010.
Salehnia, Ali. Ethical issues of information systems. Hershey: Idea Group Inc (IGI), 2002.
Stair, Ralph, Reynolds George, and Reynolds George W. Fundamentals of Information Systems. 5th ed. New York: Cengage Learning, 2008.

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