Privacy, Trust, & Ethics

The final topic modules concern three important issues that are somewhat related. Each issue essentially deals with some component of our personal comfort levels associated with using the Internet. While the Internet has more or less shed its Wild West mentality, there still exist a feeling among many people that trouble is not far off. Although some doomsayers predict a total collapse of the Internet or warn of Big Brother, most likely the trouble will come from some 15 year old with too much time on his or her hands or some overzealous marketing manager who floods your email account with spam. From a business perspective, things are starting to look up as more people become more comfortable with buying and selling online. For many people that feeling you get just before you press the Enter button to send your credit card number off to some e-tailer in order to buy that cool new CD has subsided. In fact, Internet folklore suggests that it is now safer to give your credit card number out over the Internet then it is to give your credit card to a waiter or waitress in a restaurant. True or not, the following issues must still be addressed.

Privacy

Whether we like it or not there is a lot of personal information floating around cyberspace about you and your family. For example, have you ever wondered if that guy in high school ended up in the Big House just like the guidance councilor said he would? All it takes is a few mouse clicks and his rap sheet is yours to scrutinize.

Try http://www.dc.state.fl.us/ActiveInmates/inmatesearch.asp for any friends you may have in Florida. While probably not as embarrassing as your mug shot, each time you log on to the Internet you lose a little more of your privacy thanks to the development of such wonders as cookies, online profiling software, and the creative use of IP addresses. And, we should not forget about those well-publicized incidents were the dreaded hackers broke in to some firm's database and stole 10,000 credit card numbers. Past security and privacy breeches aside, organizations that operate on the Internet must build customer confidence by continuing to develop plans for safeguarding information.

Trust

Another issue that must be addressed if the Internet is to reach its fullest potential concerns the development of trust between online buyers and sellers. While customers are generally comfortable buying a product from a reputable vendor who has done business in the same location on Main Street for the past 50 years, online purchasing involves a different set of dynamics. For instance, unless you're buying from a respectable company with a well-known brand (e.g., Dell Computer), you can never be certain with whom you're doing business. While most of the time online transactions conclude without a problem, there are those who prefer to do things in an underhanded and shady manner. In order to combat the consequences of snake oil salesmen and fly-by-night operators, mechanisms must be developed to facilitate trust.

Ethics

Is there a right way or a wrong way to do business on the Internet? Are there products and services that should not be sold online? Who decides when a dot.com steps over the line and does something wrong? How do you define wrong? What about cybersquatting? Is it ethical for some dot.coms to patent business models? Business ethics in a traditional sense is often a gray area. As the Internet grows, so does the gray area concerning what is a reasonable business practice and what is an abuse of the system. Suffice it to say, as with traditional businesses (i.e., non-cyber business) rules of conduct and acceptable behavior are beginning to evolve. Organizations, as well as individuals, that wish to participate in online activities are being held to higher standards. Those who fail to play fairly are finding that the consequences can be severe.

The readings associated with the above topics are meant to provide a general understanding of how certain structural (e.g., cookies) and behavioral (e.g., business practices) issues are being dealt with on the Internet. Given the subjective nature of these topics, our main goal is to jointly interpret the articles and papers in order to provide us with food for thought.