Cyberethics: Morality and Law in Cyberspace, 5th Edition

Cyberethics: Morality and Law in Cyberspace, 5th Edition

by Richard A. Spinello
Released February 2013
Publisher(s): Jones & Bartlett Learning
ISBN: 9781449688424

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Book description


The Internet and widespread use of blogging, email, social media and e-commerce have foregrounded new, complex moral issues and dilemmas. Likewise, modern technologies and social networks have brought numerous challenges to legal systems, which have difficulty keeping up with borderless global information technologies. The fully revised and updated Fifth Edition of Cyberethics: Morality and Law in Cyberspace offers an in-depth and comprehensive examination of the social costs and moral issues emerging from ever-expanding use of the Internet and new information technologies. Focusing heavily on content control, free speech, intellectual property, and security, Cyberethics: Morality and Law in Cyberspace provides legal and philosophical discussions of these critical issues.

The updated Fifth Edition includes new sections on Floridi’s Macroethics, gatekeepers and search engines, censorship, anti-piracy legislation, patents, and smartphones. Real-life case studies, including all-new examples focusing on Google, Facebook, video games, reader’s rights, and the Lulz Sec Hackers, provide real-world context. Ideal for undergraduate computer ethics courses as well as a general readership, Cyberethics is an excellent resource for students and laypeople alike.

Key Features:
•Additional and revised content on P2P networks, hacktivists, cybercrime, a user's ability to control and monitor cookies in IE, mobilization data, online surveillance, threats posed by social networking, invasive commercial initiatives, Wikileaks, and more.
•Examines the threat of the Internet on our privacy as consumers and employees, with a focus on covert information gathering, the use of "Cookies" and spyware.
•End-of-chapter questions and case studies encourage critical thinking
•Discusses the common ethical and public policy problems that have arisen and how technology or law would propose to solve these issues
•Provides an unbiased review of Internet governance regulations

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright
  4. Dedication
  5. Contents
  6. Preface
  7. Chapter One: The Internet and Ethical Values
    1. Cyberethics and the “Law of the Horse”
    2. Iron Cage or Gateway to Utopia?
    3. Ethical Values and the Digital Frontier
      1. Utilitarianism
      2. Contract Rights (Contractarianism)
      3. Moral Duty (Pluralism)
      4. New Natural Law
    4. Postscript on Moral Theory
    5. Floridi’s Macroethics
    6. Normative Principles
      1. Autonomy
      2. Nonmaleficence
      3. Beneficence
      4. Justice
    7. Discussion Questions
    8. References
    9. Additional Resources
  8. Chapter Two: Regulating and Governing the Internet
    1. A Short History of the Internet
    2. The Internet’s Current Architecture
    3. The World Wide Web
    4. Electronic Commerce
    5. Gatekeepers and Search Engines
    6. Social Networking
    7. Social Problems and Social Costs
      1. The Invisible Hand
      2. Regulating the Net: The Visible Hand
    8. A “Bottom-Up” Approach: The Power of Code
    9. Internet Governance
    10. Contested Sovereignty in Cyberspace
    11. Discussion Questions
    12. Case Studies: L’Affair Yahoo!
      1. American or Australian Libel Law?
      2. Google: The New Monopolist?
    13. References
    14. Additional Resources
  9. Chapter Three: Free Speech and Content Controls in Cyberspace
    1. Speech and Internet Architecture
    2. Pornography in Cyberspace
      1. Public Policy Overview
      2. Automating Content Controls
      3. New Censors and Controversies
    3. Hate Speech and Online Threats
    4. Anonymous Speech
    5. The Ethics of Blogging
    6. Spam as Commercial Free Speech
    7. Government Censorship and the Fate of Political Speech
    8. Postscript
    9. Discussion Questions
    10. Case Studies: The Librarian’s Dilemma
      1. Are Video Games Free Speech?
      2. Digital Censorship in China
    11. References
    12. Additional Resources
  10. Chapter Four: Intellectual Property in Cyberspace
    1. Background on Intellectual Property
      1. What Is Intellectual Property?
      2. Legal Protection for Intellectual Property
      3. Moral Justifications for Intellectual Property
      4. Recent Legislation
    2. Issues for the Internet and Networking Technologies
      1. Copyright and the Digital Dilemma
      2. Software Ownership and the Open Source Code Movement
      3. Digital Rights Architectures
      4. Business Method Patents in Cyberspace
      5. Patents and Smartphones
      6. Domain Names and Interconnectivity Issues
    3. Postscript
    4. Discussion Questions
    5. Case Studies: Readers’ Rights, Remixing, and Mashups
      1. Patent War on the Web: Amazon v. Barnes & Noble
      2. A Parody of PETA
      3. The Movie Industry Takes on Grokster
    6. References
    7. Additional Resources
  11. Chapter Five: Regulating Internet Privacy
    1. A Definition and Theory of Privacy
    2. Personal Information on the Internet
    3. Consumer Privacy on the Internet
      1. Privacy-Invasive Technologies
      2. Policy Considerations
      3. Moral Considerations
    4. The United States and the European Union: Divergent Paths to Privacy Protection
      1. Privacy Legislation in the United States
      2. Privacy Protection in the European Union
    5. A Prescription for Privacy?
    6. Privacy in the Workplace
      1. Privacy Rights at Risk
      2. Comparing U.S. and European Policies
      3. The Case For and Against Monitoring
    7. Discussion Questions
    8. Case Studies: DoubleClick: The Ethics of Online Advertising
      1. Facebook’s “Unfriendly” Privacy Policies
      2. Newport Electronics
    9. References
    10. Additional Resources
  12. Chapter Six: Securing the Electronic Frontier
    1. Vulnerabilities of the Net
    2. Cybercrime
    3. Antipiracy Architectures
    4. Trespass, Unauthorized Access, and Hacktivision
      1. Questionable Forms of Trespass
    5. Security Measures in Cyberspace
    6. The Encryption Controversy: A Public Policy Perspective
      1. The Clipper Chip
      2. Clipper II
      3. Key Management Infrastructure or Clipper III
      4. Policy Reversal
    7. Encryption Code, Privacy, and Free Speech
    8. Discussion Questions
    9. Case Studies: The Lulz Sec Hackers
      1. eBay v. Bidder’s Edge: Trespass or Legitimate Access?
    10. References
    11. Additional Resources
  13. Glossary: The Language of the Internet
  14. Legal Cases Cited
  15. Index

Product information

  • Title: Cyberethics: Morality and Law in Cyberspace, 5th Edition
  • Author(s): Richard A. Spinello
  • Release date: February 2013
  • Publisher(s): Jones & Bartlett Learning
  • ISBN: 9781449688424