Faculty of Science

Objectives

This course focuses on impacts of computer technology on society, and on issues of ethics for the computing professional. The course considers the historical development of computer and communication technologies, the resulting impacts on society, and ethical issues raised by these developments.

Contents

Introduction to ethics and computer ethics. Survey of the tools of ethical analysis. Applications of the tools of ethical analysis. Professional ethics and codes of conduct. Privacy issues. Intellectual property protection issues. Freedom of expression and the Internet. Ethical dimensions of computer system reliability. Digital Divide. Social impact of technology in the workplace (including employment and workplace design), in education, in healthcare, in law (computer crime). Computers and the Law: Intellectual Property (Copyrights), Liability, Computer Crime. Social Networks