An Ethical and Moral Decision to Share Information - Case Study Example

And human experience and technology increases, the overall application that ethics and morality have in helping to define the interaction between individuals and their environment takes on an entirely new role. For instance, utilizing the case of Singer’s “Visible Man: Ethics in a World Without Secrets”, the reader can come to a firm appreciation of the way in which recent technological growth has created an entirely new set of questions and moral concerns that are concentric upon the way in which privacy is replicated and information is shared. As a function of engaging with such an understanding, the following analysis will focus specifically upon moral and ethical concerns relating to information sharing and the impacts that these have on human privacy. Furthermore, the analysis will also engage with the questions of when it is an ethical and moral decision to share information/knowledge and what types of knowledge/information should be included. Further, the question of why privacy should be valued and what is at stake will also be engaged. Additionally, advancements in technology will be discussed with reference to the abilities of surveillance and “sousveillance”; as well as an identification of these terms. Finally, a discussion of social media use and the degree and extent to which online privacy exists within this particular format will be engaged. It is the hope of this particular analysis that such a level of discussion and understanding will provide a unique level of insight with respect to surveillance and privacy that exists within the current dynamic; as well as relevant ethical and moral concerns that can be related to these determinants. Firstly, with regard to the question of whether or not it is a moral or ethical responsibility to share knowledge/information, the answer to this question is understandably nuanced. For instance, it can and should be understood that sharing knowledge and information is integrally related to the process of human education and growth. As such, a brief review of history denotes the fact that the degree and extent to which information/knowledge has been shared has a direct correlation to the growth potential and development that different people groups have experienced. However, by much the same token, an individual could reasonably argue that there is no moral or ethical dictum that demands an individual should focus their efforts on sharing and spreading knowledge/information. The underlying logic behind this particular point of view is that knowledge and information are ultimately human derived resources that can and should be used to promote personal gain and development. As such, if each and every proprietary ideal were under the moral/ethical dictate of sharing and knowledge expansion, new ideas would not so readily be exhibited. The reason for this has to do with the fact that the incentive to develop, faith, and create would necessarily be reduced; due to the impossibility of a single individual gaining profitability based on their ideas. As with so many issues, the truth lies somewhere in between; however, for the purposes of argument, it is the understanding of this particular analyst that the latter approach is invariably the best towards developing new ideas and promoting the interests of all human knowledge into the future. Delving deeper into the issue, the analyst comes to realize that ethical and moral concerns with respect to information sharing have a direct impact with respect to human privacy. For instance, one could very well consider the case in which the judicial system requires a series of court orders as a function of delving into the lives of a suspect or individual of interest with respect to a specific crime. Although the legal sphere represents only one aspect of morality and ethics with relation to human privacy, the reader can quickly understand that the degree and extent to which information is freely shared can drastically and negatively impact upon the overall quality of life and rights that such individuals might otherwise presume to exhibit. Taking this to its ultimate end, individuals that argue for decreasing levels of privacy would indicate that only those that actually have “something to hide” would be in fear of an increase and information sharing. However, this particular argument as a fundamental logical flaw; namely that it assumes that individuals protest against the freedom of information sharing that governments and municipalities engage upon solely based upon their fear of being caught in and illegality. The fact of the matter is that a broad majority of individuals that opposed such information sharing, on the grounds of morality and ethics, point to a fundamental abrogation of their “rights” as the reason for why they ultimately resist such a paradigm. As the analysis has thus far discussed the means by which morality and ethics can be defined in terms of information sharing and privacy, is now necessary to discuss when it is moral and ethical that information/knowledge should be shared. In reverting back to the example that was given previously, it can quickly be determined that information sharing is acceptable and morally/ethically good when it does not harm another human being. Likewise, pointing to the degree and extent to which education and knowledge has the potential to develop society and the overall base of knowledge that humanity can draw from, information sharing is essential in accomplishing these goals. Naturally, this is something of a simplistic definition; however, it is categorized by the Fiat that at such a point in time in which information sharing becomes to infringe upon personal privacy and/or harm another human being, it therefore requires a more thorough analysis as to whether it is both morally and ethically responsible in its execution. From the analysis that has thus far been conducted, the relationship between information sharing and privacy has primarily been defined. However, it is also necessary to understand why privacy should be valued and what does it say when such a value is disregarded. In seeking to answer this, it is necessary to review the recent course of history. Although recorded history spans thousands of years, the past several hundred years have noted a dramatic change with regard to the way in which individuals interact with one another and understand their moral responsibility with respect to a broader community and the individual. Speaking broadly, democratic norms and principles have come to pervade much of the developed world. As a direct result of these norms and principles, people have broadly come to appreciate the importance of individuality and individual thought to a more heightened degree as compared to any other prior point in history. The emphasis upon the importance of the individual is tantamount to the success and growth that humanity had experienced over the past several hundred years. Without recognizing and appreciating this, the meaning of the accomplishments that have been made and a further understanding of how society has come to integrate with itself is lost (Singer 3). In such a manner, by diminishing the importance of privacy, the individual inherently diminishes the importance of the individual. The difficulty in all of this comes with respect to the growth in human society and technology that is created a situation in which privacy and individual thoughts, ideas, and actions seem to be at a continual impacts. For instance, even a cursory review of European nations, and/or the United States, reveals the fact that surveillance of these societies had increased drastically over the past several decades This not only extends with respect to the degree and extent in which video surveillance is utilized as a means of tracking crime and providing useful statistics to governments and municipalities, it also extends to the degree and extent to which these same governments utilize electronic eavesdropping as a means of predicting crime, countering terrorism, and other activities that necessarily trample on individual privacy. As such, the growth of this technology has created previously unfathomable levels of oversight that governments and stakeholders within positions of power can utilize to monitor the individual thoughts and activities of those throughout society. Not surprisingly, the increased level of surveillance and frustration with the ethical and moral disregard for privacy has encouraged many individuals within different parts of the world to engage with what is known as “sousveillance”; a term that was coined to mean the activity of recording an incident that is occurring in society. As the prefix indicates, “sousveillance” is watching from below; whereas surveillance can typically be understood as watching from above. The underlying importance of these terms is necessary; not only with respect to understanding a level of civil disobedience and frustration with the increasing levels of surveillance that are being exhibited throughout society – but also with regard to the way in which individuals are taking matters into their own hands and utilizing the very same technology that is leveraged against them as a means of safeguarding their own personal interests (Singer 2). A relevant concern to all of this exists with respect to social media and the degree and extent to which online privacy exists within this format. Recent revelations with respect to the privacy policy of social media giants such as Facebook and Twitter have indicated that these firms place little emphasis on the privacy of their uses and regularly engage in surveillance of them as a means of targeting marketing to their consumers. Sadly, individuals that have little knowledge or interest with respect to their overall level of online privacy fall victim to blogging, photographing, or otherwise relating each and every aspect of their own personal lives, taste, friends, and interests so that an efficient marketing machine such as that which is employed by Facebook and/or Twitter can take advantage of these and more effectively target products and services to them. Sadly, the information that has thus far been put forward does not paint a very optimistic picture with respect to the scope of privacy that should be expected within the coming years. However, even though there have been core and fundamental setbacks on nearly every front with respect to human privacy, it is still the resounding belief of this particular analyst that privacy forms the basis of human creativity and individuality. As a function of this, it is the further expectation of this particular analysis that privacy and human individuality will not disappear. Instead, it is likely that a reinterpretation and re-engagement with the ethics and morality of human privacy and individuality will soon come to be engaged and society may very well retract itself from the overly heavy handed tactics that have thus far defined the approach to human privacy exhibited over the past few decades. Work Cited Singer, Peter. "Visible man | Harpers Magazine." Harpers magazine. N.p., 1 Aug. 2011. Web. 2 July 2014. Read More