Managing and Using Information System

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USING INFORMATION ETHICALLY

IT has created a unique set of ethical issues related to the use and control of information. This chapter addresses those issues from various perspectives using three normative theories (stockholder, stakeholder, and social contract) to understand the responsible use and control of information by business organizations. Social contract theory is extended to evolving issues such as green computing and responsiveness to foreign governments when ethical tensions emerge. At the individual and corporate level, Mason's PAPA (Privacy, Accuracy, Property, Accessibility) framework is applied to information control. The chapter concludes with discussions of the ethical role of managers in today's dynamic world of social business and security controls to keep information safe and accurate.

When TJX Co. found the largest data security breach in the history of retailing, it faced a serious ethical dilemma not faced by many companies. It originally estimated that the credit card accounts of 45.6 million customers worldwide were affected (though that number has been updated to 94 million). Given the extent of the breach, multiple state, federal, and foreign jurisdictions dictated how and when it must inform affected customers and what corrective steps it must take. Most jurisdictions allowed 45 days for it to act following the determination of the breach. Any extension ...