Living in the Information Age - Essay Example

Name: Professor: Institution: Course: Date: Living in the information age Information age came about during the industrialization period. Individuals were used to traditional ways of living but the invention of machines such as computers brought about the change. This did not only better the lives of people but it also resulted to social and ethical issues that are positive while others are negative. The human race used to behave in a more defines way but now, technology has led to the change in how people relate. On the ethical side, individuals have allowed the invention of technology to guide them on how to behave with regards to identifying what is wrong and right thus resulting to the social and the ethical issues as discussed below. Technology has led to the improvement of how businesses and organizations operate. It has become easier to access information and reach out to customer through electronic marketing. At the same time, competition is on the rise as organizations have to come up with better and stronger strategies to retain their customers as they at the same time ensure that they maintain morality in the business (Castell,2003). Therefore, information age has impacted businesses and organizations in the following ways. Social networking is one way through which information age has improved as individuals can be able to communicate as they transact through the internet. Medium of communication such a facebook, twitter, instagram among others are some of the means through which individuals can interact as they share their ideas. For example, in facebook, one can open a business page where people can be able to view what that company does thus making it easier and reducing costs for advertising such a business or even an organization. The internet has made it easier for people to do their shopping as one does not have to go to the mall, instead, online buying is the alternative. Thus, reducing costs such as time and traveling costs. Another social issue is that the jobs that were done by people or middle workers are now being done through the use of computers hence job loss (). In other departments people are being retrenched because their services can be done better through the use of technology, this has led to the increase in the problem of unemployment as talented individuals stay at home without jobs. Ethically, employers have started dehumanizing people based on how machines work. They expect their workers to work efficiently and effectively just as the computers and other manufacturing machines operate (Fuchs, 2007). This has reduced efficiency and thus affecting the performance of the business. Employers forget that we were once in era where no machine could operate and they would still make money but with advent of theses machine, quick money can not be allowed to be lost hence the erosion of the good relationships between workers and employers who are supposed to rely on each other for their own benefit as they improve the lives of each other. Workers become demotivated as they continue working in the market where efficiency and performance is measured using a machine. Personal privacy is very important in the business world. Information age though has come to disrupt this as individuals are now required to safeguard their information in a more better and improved ways (Solove, 2004). This is because; hackers can easily steal someone’s identity and use it to steal from the business or organization which can be very devastating. In a business, there are certain information that can not be sold or told to third parties, simply because, competitors might use that for their advantage while the other company loses to them. Ethically, this has become a problem as hackers have violated the way the society guides them to do the right thing, stealing goes beyond their norms and behavior but instead, they still continue to do so. Accountability with regards to information protection, intellectual property and personal privacy have been affected as hackers provide vague records so that they can be given access to the systems where they can assemble, integrate and distribute information. This has led to the businesses and organizations come up with ways through which their information is safeguarded. For example, there have been job creation where new individuals devise ways which they can use to safe their house. This is why it is said, that acts have consequences. White collar crimes are another ethical issue affecting organization and businesses. Individuals have become experts in the use of machines and computer s to a point that they have devised ways through which they can steal from their employers. For example, accountants can easily change amount in words to be more than what is expected thus making money out of such activities .there are other ways to steal from the business or organization. Software piracy is one of the ways. This has ethically affected the society in that there are as a result of it being practices; a lot of jobs have been lost as national revenue finds its way into the hands of pirates thus tax revenue lost in a given country (Baase, 2008). Loss of revenue affects the nation as citizen live a substandard life leading to poverty. Consumer fraud gets in the ways as consumers are not able to distinguish between the genuine products in the market and the counterfeit one. This as a result indicates how morals have been eroded as individuals can lie to others in a more open but undistinguished way to benefit at their expense. It has also become easier for individuals to commit computer crimes. These sort of consist of stealing of information to benefit oneself while the other party has worked hard for it. Cyber crimes have become common where individuals pretend to be employers and through the internet, they are able to advertise jobs (Castells, 2010). In the process, people apply for such jobs which mostly involve travelling to a new country. While arriving there, these people find out that there are no jobs but instead they were being trafficked to a different country to become slaves. Computer crimes can also include the games played in the internet where one is told that they have won e can be told they have won the case as on a lot of money after participating in a given game. This is not always the case as one can be told that they have won a given sum of money and that the only way for them to get their money, they are supposed to send to a given number a certain amount of money so that they can be given the other amounts. Many people have been fooled this way and they are left with nothing because they were victims of computer crimes. Politics is said to be a dirty game. And sure it is because, with the new technology, one can unmask their opponent before people making them change their mind. A politician can get negative information about their opponent through the social media platform and use it against their opponent only to win their votes even if in an unethical way. One can also utilize the information age to monopolize the market hence becoming the most powerful individual in the market through the use of information in the market (Castells, 2011). It is said that the economy has changes during this information age in the sense that, there is less labor while information and capital have become more intensive. Even as workers continue to perform well, the value of their labor has continued to decrease as they are mostly using computers, and machines to provide their services. At some point, what they could have done easily using their hands has become obsolete because computers and other machines can perform such tasks in a more efficient way thus it has become possible for inexperienced people with little capital but more knowledge on the use of the internet to succeed in their business. Students have not been left out in this information age. They can easily get materials for their education but at the same time, they use the internet to cheat in their examinations. Students easily sneak their phones into the examination rooms where they google topics given in their papers and copy. This has led to poor managers and leaders as there is no sustainability of their education because, the internet does everything for them. It is no wonder we are having leaders who cannot help in the development of the economy because their knowledge is not owned but from the internet. Plagiarism has also been used so much by students who after being given an assignment, all they do is copy and paste from the internet and that’s it. This makes it hard for them to internalize even the little ideas as all they need is a computer at their disposal. Automation has led to higher productivity but increased job loss in the industry. Computers, computerizes machinery, satellites among other machines have led to the worth or workforce being reduced tremendously, this is because, most jobs that could be performed by use of hands can now be done using the automatic machines thus making work easier. This has not left out the managers who now compare their workers to machines as they expect their outcome to be as automatic as that of the computers (Quinn, 2005). This dehumanizes their workforce thus labor turnover increases as productivity becomes affected by reduces motivated workforce. Bio-digital technology is also one of the ways through which the information age has impacted the society. Scientists can easily carry out research of a given subject and get results faster and efficient. For example, conception can now be done through the use of technology; development of seeds to plant can also be done through the internet as the experts explore more ways through which the digital age has impacted the society. To be able to live in this information age where individuals are not able to maintain law and order due to the use of the internet among other ways, one needs to understand that the social and ethical issues cannot be avoided but instead, they need to be protected so as to make this information age sustainable and with more benefits than losses. Therefore, there are several guidelines that can help in ensuring that even with the technology with us we can still have a society whose morals are upheld. This is possible if one does the following, joining others into the social media for the good reasons such as marketing your job or even people on twitter and LinkedIn where one can learn more from others as you share ideas. Being open minded is very important especially during this information era. This is because, there are some information that can mislead an individual therefore it is better to know and understand what information one is looking for otherwise, one may risk changing their behavior because of information. It is also important to become an ambassador of your culture as one communicates through the different mediums, it is important to ensure that one does not entertain other cultures that might erode theirs. For example, issues such as pornography and homosexuality are in the internet thus one needs to know as they access information they might be misled hence wisdom is very important. Therefore, as more inventions and innovations come with this era of information, it is good that one adapts to it as it has more benefits and the social and ethical issues that come with it are manageable. If well utilized, information can take one to higher heights to explore more options that can benefit the society at length without eroding its morals while maintaining social order. References Baase, S. (2008). A gift of fire: Social, legal, and ethical issues for computing and the Internet. Pearson Prentice Hall. Castells, M. (2003). The power of identity: The information Age: Economy, society and culture, Volume II (The information age). Castells, M. (2010). End of Millennium: The Information Age: Economy, Society, and Culture| (Vol. 3). John Wiley & Sons. Castells, M. (2011). The rise of the network society: The information age: Economy, society, and culture (Vol. 1). John Wiley & Sons. Fuchs, C. (2007). Internet and society: Social theory in the information age. Routledge. Quinn, M. J. (2005). Ethics for the information age. Boston: Pearson/Addison-Wesley. Solove, D. J. (2004). The digital person: Technology and privacy in the information age (Vol. 1). NYU Press. Read More