Computing Technologies in Society

This article discusses various topics related to computing technologies in society such as plagiarism, erosion of personal privacy, biometric data, driverless vehicles, RFID, and drone project objectives.

Running head: COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Computing Technologies in Society
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:

1COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Section 1
Question 1:
a) Plagiarism: It is stealing and writing of another author’s thoughts and ideas and
present it as the own original work. It is also considered as academic dishonesty. The written
sentence is considered as plagiarized when it is not crediting the source. Gawali and Thakore
(2017) stated that plagiarism is unauthorized use and close of language along with thoughts of
other author.
b) In order to avoid plagiarism, it is required to backup own words as well as thoughts
with support from the author. When the user can find information perfect to prepare the research
report, it should be make sure that the writer cannot copy more than two words in row from the
text itself (Bansal, Mahajan and Bhushan 2015). The writer should paraphrase the entire sentence
based on its own understanding. Good referencing helps to consider and analyze the writings of
author and avoid of possible accusation of plagiarism.
Question 2:
The digital technologies eroded the personal privacy values by following three ways:
i. The confidential information which is shared with other by using email are hacked by the
hacker.
ii. Tracking of online activity is an issue as tracking cookies save the web browser and save
personal information such as address, passwords in addition to credit card number for
particular website (Freed et al. 2017).

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iii. The banking details are also stolen such as bank account number, password at the time of
performing online transactions.
Question 3:
Following are two potential ramifications which are associated with increasing use of the
biometric data for doing the personal identification:
i. There is lack of existing data which deters capability to use for the background
checks of the individuals (Uzo 2015).
ii. The biometric information is shared throughout use of software and it is kept into
the computer. It makes the data vulnerable to copy from the computer system to
access it anytime by unauthorized person.
Question 4:
Social implications of driverless vehicles for transport purpose are that this type of
vehicles is improving the travel safety with its automated vehicles and expectations of accidents
are reduced to 80%. There are access to the cheaper travel with people are saving their time
(Harper, Hendrickson and Samaras 2018). There is removing of driver cost due to use of
automated vehicles for delivery of goods. Those driverless cars are less expensive for operation
as compared to public transport vehicles. It also allows greater investment into mass transit
services.
Question 5:
The main concerns regarding implementation of RFID are ethical issues which concern
about identification of the human beings. RFID implants make people track without any
requirement for misuse of the data and information. The ethical implications of implantation of

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RFID into the human body are that in recent days, passport used of embedded chips, therefore it
is possible that related information are read by the business and government bodies which is
considered as identity thieves (Ahson and Ilyas 2017). The data which are stolen are being
acquired with the new content of owner. RFID devices are created of technology layer which can
generate information related to people, customs as well as past. The ethical issues which are
related to chipping of RFID are privacy; health related risks, as well as medical hazards. The
ethical problem with RFID implants are concern regarding governments start regulation on
implantation of the RFID.
Question 6:
There is constant argument to why people are not caring about the fact that computer
security is the main concern. Based on the perspective of erosion of privacy, as per my point of
view, the statement should be referred as: “arguing that you are not caring about right to privacy
as you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you do not care about security of
information as you do not have nothing to keep safe as far as security of the data is also a
concern.” The statement “If you’ve nothing to hide, you’ve nothing to fear”, it means that if
there are nothing to be considered wrong, then if there is honest person, there are no such reason
for any fear possible for investigation about the person. As for example, when person gets
knowledge on the privacy, then closed source software is being used in the computer for the
privacy reasons. The statement “nothing to hide” states that the surveillance programs are not
threatening the privacy unless it uncovers of illegal activities. The person those favors to the
argument stated that “there is nothing to hide”, and there are no expression of opposition to the
surveillance. The individual with this argument stated that the person should not be worried
about the surveillance when he or she has nothing to hide. The problem with the statement is that

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“nothing to hide”, nothing to fear”, it debates about rights towards the privacy as well as free to
speech which ignores complexity of relationship between the individual as well as information
related to the individual. “Nothing to hide, nothing to fear”, is myth, a Trojan horse which falls
back on fear to justify the schemes of surveillance.

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Section – 2
Question 1:
Title of the chosen project: Drone
Question 2:
Following are the project objectives of drone project:
 To provide opportunities to access new competencies related to use of drone technologies
 To understand the working of drone
 To analyze the features and applications of drone
For this project, drone is selected as now-a-days, drone is most advanced devices into
aeronautics electronics as well as robotics (Shaw 2016). The project develops and improves
transmission along with maintenance by development of areas of interest with Unmanned
Aerial Vehicle (UAV) drone (Vizcaino 2016). UAV is provided efficient mean not to enforce
the rules of traffic as well as support the traffic police on the ground. This project work also
provides efficient information to the traffic.
Question 3:
I decided not to work into project group as I want to control this assignment as not to
interest to create network of people and take follow up as it was not opted for the task into group.

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Section- 3
1. Copy of discussion board postings with indication of posting date
Activity 1.1
Class Introduction:
Date: 30 January 2018
Greetings Everyone
I have a presence of mind and able to exercise discretion when a need arises. I work as a
technical director for a local company for over 3 years now. In my responsibility as a director, I
am involved in business oriented technical professional, distinctive on capitalizing on technology
to enhance overall capabilities while wielding expertise in design, production and distribution of
technical accessories. I analyze user requirements and usability metrics to ensure customer
satisfaction, with emphasis on technical soundness and resource efficiency. Work-related
projects have brought me to cities like Beijing, Shanghai China and Tokyo Japan.
I am an independent and reliable person. In my studies, I show keen interest, and I am very
decisive in a quest for academic growth. My strongest academic abilities lie in calculations and
computing. I am confident that a University of Derby education along with the contributions on
this forum will inspire me to do greater things.
Cheers!

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Activity 1.2
Date: 31/01/2018
"You have zero privacy anyway. Get over it."
Do you agree with his statement?
Different people have different references and different ways of evaluating the above statement. I
would like to disagree with Scott.
I understand that Scott McNealy made this comment nearly a decade ago, what scares the
daylight out of him was the idea of a planned socialist economy driven by a bureaucratic
government of appointed officials knowing about his personal information and their surveillance
on his activities. I believe he was bothered by the wealth of personal information big
governments like USA access and monopolize whereas the case is different and few for small
governments. Some of the ways the big governments extract this information are physical (health
care, insurance, education) and online (cookie proliferation, seizing cloud data, location data
betrayal).
Nowadays, some big corporations that usually disclose personal information to big governments
are gradually beginning to protect their customers from an unnecessary intrusion of privacy. We
see new improvement from Facebook; they now ensure that privacy and security of sensitive
documents sent to them by users are received from a secure connection by default. User
information is encrypted and read by team members only whom automatically delete personal
information after 30 days. Facebook's subsidiary cross-platform instant messaging app called

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Whatsapp enabled an all data to end to end encrypted service which allows users to control the
manner in which they want the third party to gain access to their information.
Nevertheless, there have been situations in the past where Facebook tends to disclose
information to the governments based on criminal grounds only. A good example was when
Malaysian government asked Facebook to provide personal data pertaining to 28 users on the
social media platform at which the social giant provided no data for 2 emergency cases and
emphasized that every request they receive is checked for legal sufficiency and rejected or
require greater specificity on requests that are overly broad or vague.
In addition, another tech giant from California by the name Apple made world headlines (2015)
while shedding light on the topic of online user privacy which caused a hot media frenzy debate
when they vehemently declined the Federal Bureau of Investigation access to unlock an iPhone
of a gunman that was involved in San Bernardino mass shooting. Apple argues that the
government's demand for assistance is indeed an unreasonable burden because of the nature of
that assistance which entails writing a new code against Apple's will as to enable FBI to perform
a brute force password cracking attack on the phone.
In conclusion, corporations that designs, develops and sell consumer electronics or online
services should protect their users be it via encryption or any latest cutting-edge procedure.
There's no way any government whether big or small should be allowed to bully the very public
that appointed them. Extraction of personal information and mass surveillance on activities ought
to have some restrictions. Users should also find out ethical ways to control their activities
online. In my case, I consider surfing anonymously using Virtual Private Network (VPN) on
sites that I do not trust. As for E-commerce, I tend to use e-wallet services that provide user with

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multiple e-cards for anonymous payments and high level security (e-Wallet Optimizer)... e.g.
Neteller, Skrill.
References
Katherine Noyes 2015. Scott McNealy on Privacy: You still don't have any. IDG News [Online]
Available at: Scott McNealy's view on privacy: You still don't have any
Zam Yusa (2017) Few request by Putrajaya for FB user data says Facebook. Free Malaysia
Today [Online] Availablehttp://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2017/12/22/fewer-
requests-by-putrajaya-for-fb-user-data-says-facebook/
Kim Zetter and Brian Barrett 2016. Apple to FBI: You can't force us to hack San Bernadino
iPhone. Wired [Online] Available athttps://www.wired.com/2016/02/apple-brief-fbi-response-
iphone/

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Strava Interactions
Date: 31 January 2018
I agree with Niall Grant to some extent regarding his take on Strava data. I would not be
surprised to learn that Strava was not aware that their data collection would reveal military
locations in remote areas.
Then again, would that justify the seemingly innocent data Strava extracts from other users?
I think it is high time we re-educated the public to pay closer attention to where our information
goes. Users should read up on agreement terms, conditions and policies of app features that they
may find interesting to use. Might I add, yes most of the end user agreements seem cumbersome
and lengthy to read, but one can quickly skim and glance towards the part that specifically
mentions about user confidentiality and third-party disclosure terms. Any data that seems
innocent can be weaponries; it only takes one good hacker.
It is equally important that Military IT professionals should not only look for ways on how to
restrict private data sharing among Military personnel in an enclosed encrypted group system but
rather create their own Strava like an app that would enable them to run and cycle without
having to give away hidden locations to third-party online companies. Another extreme measure
would be to consciously disable location services on smartphones.

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Research Material \: Edward Snowden
Date: 02 February 2018
Please, Guys, check this video out,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVwAodrjZMY
How we take back the internet | Edward Snowden
Edward Snowden addresses on how we can take back the Internet and user privacy. This guy
seems to care about human development consciousness on mass surveillance truly. He revealed
that the government has secret Federal judges that collaborate with NSA and CIA. No wonder,
some big internet corporations are walking according to Snowden's ideas to protect customers. It
makes one think, what exactly is the government's stand on freedom of speech or is there
consequences for freedom of speech which in this case there isn't?
The contributions in this room are amazing...cheers!

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Slaughter bot Drone Swarms
Date: 03 February 2018
I must admit that the slaughterbot drone swarms thingy was a scary sight to behold. Drones are
commonly known for their awesome benefits like aerial mapping, surveillance, filming,
journalism, bomb detection and as Peter highlighted from his post - shipping and delivery.
These micro- drones that use facial recognition and AI can help soldiers on the front line to fight
against enemies and terrorists. Just like a gun, what if it enters the wrong hands? In as much as it
is inexpensive to produce, a combative defence mechanism on how to stop them should not be
overlooked as, the use of chicken net/wires to trap them.

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DO YOU CONSIDER PERSONAL PRIVACY ISSUES WHEN ONLINE
Date: 03 February 2018
Yes, I do. Currently, there is a lot of research going on about improving personal privacy
throughout the world. You cannot get over with confidentiality. It is true that at some point if
somebody wants to get into your privacy, they're not much you can do about it. However, that
does not mean that we should not continue to research on better ways to improve privacy. We
should keep discovering new methods to deal with that issue (McDougall, 2012). No. My
privacy values are not different from those of my parents. Every person fears that his private
information may end up leaking to the public, therefore, suffering exploitation from intruders.
Yes, I consider personal privacy issues when I am online, but I don't believe that personal
privacy is of no use today. I understand privacy as a condition without public attention.
References
McDougall, B. S. January 01, 2012. Functions and values of privacy in the correspondence
between Lu Xun and Xu Guangping, 1925-1929. Chinese Concepts of Privacy, 147-170.

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Unit 1.3 - IDENTIFY SIX PRIVACY VALUES
Date: 3 February 2018
There are privacy values that I feel is particularly important to me, which especially maintained
by me to protect my details and these privacy values can be classified into the following
categories: Spatial, action, communication, thought, personal, situation and association. The
solitude is an example of the spatial privacy value which is most important for me as I prefer
isolation because it helps me in my creativity by giving me required space to think creatively.
Besides this, the verbal and electronic communication is the example of communication privacy
value. Additionally, the electronic communication must be protected in my opinion as revealing
the electronic communication may bring many hazardous situations. I rarely share usernames
and password information with third parties, and definitely would not appreciate anyone
eavesdropping on my conversations.
Apart from this, the habit and behaviour are the examples of action privacy value (Espejo 2011).
From these, both the behaviour and habit of the people are important value as these help in
recognizing various aspects of people. By protecting my privacy, I can limit the power of
influence the government, people and private sectors would want to have on me in their quest of
decision-making that can control or shape my behaviour. On the other hand, I am beginning to
understand that some folks in show business do masterfully reveal personal stuff about their lives
for promotional reasons.
The faith and politics are categorised as thought privacy value, and both of them are important as
the faith of an individual depicts that individual's beliefs and trust on something, which can be
formed by religious concepts, from the race and region. Besides this, the politics is also

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important as it can depict the plans of an individual to meet a specific aim. People can easily
judge someone based on their views on politics and religions, I was once told by my parents
never to discuss two topics usually on first dates, and that is Religion and Politics. People not
only tend to judge quickly but sometimes out of context.
Freedom of expression is a value that is enhanced by privacy. Freedom of association is also
another value that cannot exist without privacy (Woodard and Search Group 2015). In as much
as I prefer a life of solitude which serves as a place to retreat from the chaos of the public. It is
imperative that one establish informational social relationships which I happen to find in my
friends, family and mentors. Likewise, privacy helps me to manage some of my social
boundaries ranging from my workplace relationships, doctor to friends. I would not want my
relationships with those to tank because of breaches of trust caused by privacy invasion.
Intruders usually use the private information to compromise personal security.
A significant value of privacy is accountability. If anything goes wrong, one can account for all
the activities that took place. Integrity is another privacy value. With that being said, failure
stories are attributes that can be used to inspire or encourage other people after you have reached
a positive result but not when you are still in process. People can change and become well
beyond wildest imaginations; privacy helps this ability.

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References
Espejo, R. 2011. Privacy. Detroit: Greenhaven Press.
Daniel Solove 2014. 10 Reasons Why Privacy Matters. Teach Privacy [Online]. Available at:
https://www.teachprivacy.com/10-reasons-privacy-matters/ [Accessed 3 February 2018]
Woodard, P. L., & Search Group. (2015). Compendium of state privacy and security legislation,
1984 edition: Overview: privacy and security of criminal history information. Washington, D.C:
U.S. Dept. of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics.

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Unit 1.4: The Five Key Factors, Why Privacy Matters Why Privacy Matter- TED Video
Date: 4 February 2018
In this video, Glenn Greenwald, one of the preeminent reporters in the United States conveys his
plea for the incidence that the US government has planted extensive surveillance systems all
across the world for monitoring the behaviours and activities of the people to understand and
detect the terrorist activities before the terrorists can initiate their activities. It is a national
security concern and attempts to save the country from potential terrorist attacks. If we think
solely regarding security issues and measures, then it is fine as it helps in protecting nation/s
from massive devastation. However, it not only monitors the people who are involving with
terrorist activities but also monitors normal people continuously and thus violates the privacy of
the people (Roleff 2011). According to Glenn Greenwald, everyone needs privacy irrespective of
whether he/she intend to hide something from the other nor not. However, due to the extensive
surveillance implanted by the US government, thus this hamper the privacy of normal people.
Hence, they are deprived of the right of privacy.
Moreover, there are various aspects of privacy. One of the elements of privacy is what to seem
private. One protects information or data against the intruders. The other aspects of the privacy
are to understand why you need privacy which we saw with people's views on Mark
Zuckerberg's decision of purchasing extra properties in his neighbourhood to protect his privacy.
The reasons should help one know if it is truly essential...just like from another alternative
report, it was later learnt that Zuckerberg bought those houses after a developer wanted to buy
one of his neighbour's homes and use the fact that Zuckerberg lived close by as a marketing
tactic (Alyson Shontell 2013). Reports claimed that Mark Zuckerberg would lease the four

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homes he just brought back to its current residents (Alyson Shontell 2013). The third aspect is
who you choose to hide the information from. However, the last element of privacy is to
understand is when and where you want to protect the data (McDougall 2012).
References
Roleff, T. 2011. Privacy. Detroit: Greenhaven Press.
Alyson Shontell, 2013. Mark Zuckerberg just spent more than $ 30 million buying 4
neighbouring houses for privacy. Business Insider [Online]. Available at: Mark Zuckerberg Just
Spent More Than $30 Million Buying 4 Neighboring Houses For Privacy (Accessed: 4 February
2018)
McDougall, B. S. January 01, 2012. Functions and values of privacy in the correspondence
between Lu Xun and Xu Guangping, 1925-1929. Chinese Concepts of Privacy, 147-170.

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Activity 1.5 Privacy in the context of guarding potentially discreditable facts
Date: 4 February 2018
Privacy demands non-disclosure of the discreditable information that can be present or past
criminal activity. It can influence the views and perception of a higher authority. However, many
people do not like to show negative activities about themselves keeping in mind their self-respect
and reputation management. Guarding potentially discreditable fact is considered as a significant
technique that can lead to lots of social benefits as good employment positions. People's
situations sometimes are not static, being given a second chance can create a positive opportunity
for making a new start thus covering discreditable or embarrassing facts of incidents about their
pasts is a move that should be considered too. The disclosure of the criminal activity by an
individual depends on one's views and perceptions (Elizondo, Solanas and Martinez-Balleste
2012). However, an individual can try to develop a good undeservedly reputation either by
concealment of the discreditable facts or affirmative misrepresentation about themselves.
Yes. In future, I believe people should be able to hide incredible facts through privacy. A good
example -Malaysian government rolled out a process whereby loan defaulters and people with
some criminal backgrounds can have an opportunity to clear their names off from the
government's blacklist system. It is important to note that there are a lot of people who are
suffering in prison because somebody took advantage of improbable events (Oliveira and Zaiiane
2010). In the case study discussed, the peer was driving while in legal alcohol limits and that
should not be used against him. However, the person can suffer the charges of drug trafficking
while the illegal drugs were for personal use.

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References
Elizondo, D., Solanas, A. and Martinez-Balleste, A. 2012. Computational Intelligence for
Privacy and Security. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg.
Oliveira, S. R. M., and Zaïane, O. January 01, 2010. Revisiting privacy preserving clustering by
data transformation. Journal of Information and Data Management, Belo Horizonte, 1, 1, 53-56.

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Activity 1.6
Date: 5 February 2017
Yes. I believe that opening emails, letters and parcels by the government agencies intrudes to
somebody's privacy. Striking a balance between privacy and security is essential. Both privacy
and security are crucial but compromising one to improve the other does not help at all (Petkova
2016). It is regrettable that the government should open emails and parcels hence compromising
privacy trying to improve security. The employee of the state can be used by hackers to sell or
retrieve personal information from the emails. For example, suppose the president from another
country wants to reserve a hotel room via the emails. Somebody can expose that information to
ill people who might take advantage of that situation.
Privacy is a major concern for internet users; no one wants their messages or information read or
used by a third-party person (Zedner 2009). People use email for communication, and some
prefer to keep their message contents secret. The government officials examine these emails for
security reason, e.g. tracking the activities of the terrorist groups, but it is unethical and illegal to
open these emails without consent. More-so, I find the opening and examination of physical
letters even more disturbing because someone's identity can be compromised during the process
and it represents a more intrusive invasion of privacy. If physical letters can be examined, it
should be kept in mind that it is not to be disclosed or used for any unethical purpose.

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References
Petkova, B. January 01, 2016. Towards an Internal Hierarchy of Values in the EU Legal Order:
Balancing the Freedom of Speech and Data Privacy. Maastricht Journal of European and
Comparative Law, 23, 3, 421-438.
Zedner, L. 2009. Security. Hoboken: Taylor & Francis.

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Activity 1.7
Date: 5 February 2017
If privacy cannot get safely guarded, the freedom of expression gets compromised. In the case
where the government opens the emails, somebody might not communicate through the email
freely because somebody in the middle will access and information conveyed in the email. The
freedom of assembly will also get compromised because dignitaries will not share the location
they might assemble for a meeting through the email if somebody in between is observing the
communication (Westin 2015). Sometimes people want to access information privately.
Somebody with an STD will not wish to obtain the information about STDs publicly. Privacy
should, therefore, be protected to ensure that people's freedom is not compromised.
In the case of 60 percent of employers using social networking sites to research job applicants,
these further projects how discreditable facts of people from the manner of their posts can
potentially make them lose certain employment positions. I think government and big
corporations should implement adequate strategies for increasing the privacy of individuals
(Bourbeau 2015). People are now very much concern about their security measures for
protecting their information and data from dissemination. We also saw from the classic example
- the Nazi regime in Germany how a government's access to personal information of a particular
group could lead to racial profiling, controls, and deportations.
References
Westin, A. F., and Solove, D. J. 2015. Privacy and freedom
Bourbeau, P. 2015. Security. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

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Activity 1.8
Date: 5 February 2018
I do not know if this would add an interesting twist to the discussion thread but for some reason
at least I guess it does. I would accept the bid to install a surveillance system in the capital city
because besides the lousy reputation it would bring to my company, there is still need to observe
the activities taking place via CCTV Surveillance in the public places. Singapore is commonly
regarded as one of the safest countries in the world, and this wouldn't have been possible if not
for their extreme use of CCTV in public places. They mount CCTV cameras on trees. Do bear in
mind that use of CCTV cameras to monitor public activities is quite different from the situation
where government invades your privacy without consent via access to your email conversations
and letters.
Again as for a notoriously repressive government, I would say change is constant... every abuse
of power have an expiry date, we have seen that countless times repeated in the history.
There is always a genuine case in the count of cases that are handled by the firm (Raban 2008).
That would drive me to install the surveillance devices. However, I cannot justify my acceptance
by saying that I do not care about the way the technology is used or that another company will
take up the contract. I would advise the firm on the best way of handling cases.
References
Raban, J. 2008. Surveillance. New York: Vintage Books.

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Activity 1.9
Date: 5 February 2018
Some of the personal and academic factors that may lead to failure of completion of the full
programme are early pregnancies, stress, lacks in school fees, cheating in the examinations,
failure to attend classes and not reaching the academic cut-off point regularly. The predictive
modelling software can be used by the school to offer guidance to those affected by stress or
device a way to incorporate the student who cannot get college feels among others. The use of
software to predict human behaviour is significant because the software is fair and can use the
probability and intelligence come up with accurate solutions faster. The tool can, however, affect
an individual negatively because of the use probability which sometimes can be wrong. One of
the ethical issues that can make me not accept the implementation of the software is the fact that
sometimes it may lead to a false solution (Martínez and Human Rights Watch 2017).
References
Martínez, E., and Human Rights Watch (Organization),2017. "I had a dream to finish school":
Barriers to secondary education in Tanzania.

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Activity 1.8
Date: 7 February 2017
At what point is governmental surveillance too much surveillance?
Hi Dr Barry, Niall and everyone, I understand that CCTV cameras are used for public
surveillance by governments to document accurate and appropriate records of current events
because criminal and illegal activities can occur at any time in public locations. Thus, using
CCTV cameras or taking photos at peaceful protests (for example, Wellington Parliament) help
the government in providing a secure environment to the people by quickly detecting any
potential criminal or terrorist activities that may occur within the country (Ashby 2017).
Nevertheless, from the case study of a notoriously repressive government.i I will buttress my
point by saying that being in such regime doesn't necessarily mean that they (regime
representatives) are not genuinely committed to safe security state and pushing various ways via
new technologies. If people are aware that there is CCTV surveillance camera at public
locations, willingness to commit crimes will decrease, public safety can be achieved, and the fear
of crime from people can also be decreased. CCTV cameras help government authorities to
decrease crime rate within their state (Ratcliffe, Taniguchi and Taylor 2009).
Oh yeah, Niall, Singapore's safety is not entirely based on CCTV cameras surveillance, but a
higher percentage is, there are some other few factors like the population to police ratio, anti-
corruption measures and the city size. I zoomed in on public surveillance in Singapore because
it's a relatively small place that seems like an extended set of big brother where people are
monitored, and strict laws are easily enforced. Could the little correlation you reference be as a
result of differences in city sizes or some other factors?

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References
Ashby, M. 2017. The Value of CCTV Surveillance Cameras as an Investigative Tool: An
Empirical Analysis. European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research, 23(3), pp.441-459.
Ratcliffe, J., Taniguchi, T. and Taylor, R. 2009. The Crime Reduction Effects of Public CCTV
Cameras: A Multi‐Method Spatial Approach. Justice Quarterly, 26(4), pp.746-770.

28COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 2.1
Date: 7 February 2018
According to Dilhac (2001), Claude Chappe, in 1790, discovered that complex messages could
be relayed through a combination of signals. During his research, 'transmission of messages in
long-distances,' Claude Chappe, invented a semaphore, a concept used by the internet today.
Currently, a semaphore is used by the internet as an abstract data type that regulates the access of
information accessed by multiple processes concurrently. Claude Chappe also used coding
techniques whereby specific letters represented various messages. This method is currently used
by the internet to encode the message being sent to avoid man-in-middle attacks.
References
Dilhac. 2001.The Telegraph of Claude Chappe-an optical telecommunication network for the
XVIIIth century

29COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 2.4
Date: 8 February 2018
Packet switching is the mode of transmission where a message gets subdivided into a small part
called packets and sent independently across the network from the source node. The packets are
sent in different available routes and reassemble at the destination node. Circuit switching is the
mode of transmission where the source node and the destination node have to establish a
connection before the message gets sent through the network. Message switching is, however, is
a mechanism of transmission where a full message is transmitted from the source node to the
destination through via the intermediary nodes (Thompson 2016). One of the benefits of packet
switching over circuit switching and message switching is security. If man-in-middle attacks
occur, in both the circuit and message switching, the full message shall get exposed while in
packet switching the information is broken down into parts and sent in different routes hence it
becomes challenging for the hacker to detect the message.s
References
Thompson, A. R. January 01, 2016. Operational domains for circuit- and packet-switching. Ieee
Journal on Selected Areas in Communications, 14, 293-297.

30COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 2.6
Date: 8 February 2018
TCP/IP protocol, initially called ARPnet, was developed by United States DARPA. TCP/IP
protocols are said to be the rules that control the connectivity of computer systems in a network.
ARPAnet was designed in a way to utilize various protocols which got adapted from the
technologies of the time. One importance of TCP/IP is creating an interface through which two
elements of a network communicate (Dawson, Thomson and Winterbottom 2007). Without a
protocol, devices in a system cannot communicate with each other. Another importance of
TCP/IP is to enable the communication between data and network in a concept called inter-
networking.
The TCP/IP is one of the most powerful and robust protocol; it can recover information or data
automatically from any link failure during communication process by re-routing data packets.
References
Dawson, M., Thomson, M., and Winterbottom, J. 2007. IP location. New York, N.Y: McGraw-
Hill.

31COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 2.7
Date: 8 February 2018
Tim Berners-Lee is a British computer scientist who invented the World Wide Web (Binod
2016). A system developed by him to enable users to open web pages through the internet
rapidly. World Wide Web is a common pool of resources that are accessible via uniform
resource locators through the internet. Tim Berners-Lee identified that the computing world was
only geared toward graphics. He was very much interested in internet and intended to make to
the use of internet nodes by aligning it with the concept of domains and hypertext (Binod 2016).
One of the motivations that led Tim to the development of World Wide Web was that he wanted
to make his work easier and the internet was just about to become available to the people through
commercial providers (Oppitz and Tomsu 2018). This factor would drive make his idea valid to
the individuals operating the internet. At that time if the invention, various technologies were
existing but the difference between his discovery and the others was that his idea was to be
released to the public freely.
References
Binod Wilson, 2016. Tim Berners-Lee, The Founder of World-Wide Web. FreeFeast. [Online].
Available at: http://freefeast.info/personality-motivation/famous_it_personalities/tim-berners-
lee-founder-world-wide-web/ (Accessed: 8 February 2018)
Oppitz, M., and Tomsu, P. January 01, 2018. World Wide Web.

32COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Online Behavior
Date: 9 February 2018
Informative note from Auwal, thanks for sharing. In addition to what you said about your friend,
I think people sometimes subconsciously like to experiment with different identities because of it
is free consequences, allowing them to express their views, inhibited.
It is all a tangled web we weave when first we practice deceiving; Individuals create false
identities for different reasons. One of the reasons is that they do not want to be identified by
people who might take advantage of them. The other reason is that they may have an intention of
committing an offence and not get recognized.
For this reasons, it is not easy to trust somebody I have met online for the first time. It takes time
to even communicate freely with somebody I have met online via social media friend requests.
There has been media exploitation by wrong people who indulge you in communication for self-
gain. For instance, hackers may introduce malware by sending an email (Howard and Jones
2004). Emailing is a communication mechanism that has brought fear while dealing with
somebody you've never met.
Reference
Howard, P. N., and Jones, S. 2004. Society online: The Internet in context. Thousand Oaks:
SAGE Publications.

33COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
And in Australia
Date: 9 February 2018
Information is essential to any organization and should get protected from falling under wrong
harms ways. There are a lot of human factors that lead to breaches of data such are a loss of a
key, weak passwords, unnoticed malware attack amongst others. This Australian thingy
reminded me of a situation when the media revealed that Osaka police failed to report over
80,000 cases because of reputation management reason.
The organizations should come up with strict policies that are geared toward protecting
information breach (Aplin and Gurry 2012). There should be substantial penalties enforced
against individuals who cause information breach. Lastly, the organization should train the
people interacting with the system to on the ways of protecting organizational information.
Reference
Kyodo, Osaka Police Failed to Report 81000 crimes between 2008 and 2012, Japan Times,
[Online]. Available at :
Osaka police failed to report 81,000 crimes between 2008 and 2012 | The Japan Times
(Accessed; 9 February 2018)
Aplin, T. F., and Gurry, F. 2012. Gurry on breach of confidence: The protection of confidential
information. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

34COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Children and Apps
Date: 9 February 2018
There are very many challenges that are related to technology concerning children. There are
very many benefits that children can gain from technology. Technology can educate, entertain
and help them in their social life. However, there are no controls regarding the usage of
technology (Haugland and Wright 2017). Children do not have the control ability to balance
between technology, social life, and academics. In this case, there is a need to ban the use of
technology by children as to help them concentrate in school. Thus I support France, and
Massachusetts High school moves on banning phones in school. However, the children should be
allowed to interact with technology for a maximum of 2 hours a day. Allowing them will help
them learn more about technology.
Reference
Haugland, S. W., and Wright, J. L. 2017. Young children and technology: A world of discovery.
Boston: Allyn and Bacon. https://digiparenthood.wordpress.com/2013/08/23/10-benefits-of-
exposing-young-children-to-modern-technology/ (Accessed 9 February 2018)

35COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Driverless Cars
Date 09 February 2018
Every technology has both negative and positive impacts. However, there should be a weighing
between the positive and negative effects to conclude the question of technology relevance.
According to me, driverless cars will help disabled individuals to enjoy the benefits of having a
vehicle regardless of their ability to drive. Selling of driverless cars improves the economy of the
state and that of the citizen. It is ethical to have driverless cars because the benefits are more than
the risks. According to Langdon et al., (2018) there is a likelihood of developing driverless, all
weathers, and reliable and general purpose cars in future. However, there is a risk of
technological failure while using a driverless car hence causing severe accidents.
Reference
Langdon, Patrick, Ioannis Politis, Mike Bradley, Lee Skrypchuk, Alex Mouzakitis, and John
Clarkson. 2018. "Obtaining Design Requirements from the Public Understanding of Driverless
Technology."

36COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 2.8
Date: 10 February 2018
The dot-com bubble in the economic stock market occurred from the year 1995 to 2000. It
occurred due to the rapid increase in the equity markets. The internet-based organizations
invested lots of funds that would lead to increase in the equity markets.
According to the Aharon, Gavious and Yosef (2010), 'dot-com burst' occurred when American
publications (Forbes and Wall Street Journal) encouraged investors into risky internet
companies. Lots of people invested huge expecting returns from their companies which turned
into a disaster later. Some startup businesses also operated through a business plan called a short-
term loss plan. This idea suggested that by quickly obtaining the market shares and controlling a
particular sector, they could later charge an amount of their choice to the customers. The effect
of this burst was that competition was very high, and many companies registered bankruptcy
hence losing billions of the invested money. In this case, the stock price became low to the point
that the groups filed for bankruptcy. Many organizations that were struggling became merged or
acquired with other organizations. It was also seen that there was an increase in the acquisitions
and mergers activities in the market.
References
Aharon, D.Y., Gavious, I., and Yosef, R., 2010. Stock market bubble effects on mergers and
acquisitions. The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, 50(4), pp.456-470.

37COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 2.9
Date: 10 February 2018
The mind-blowing article, should I be worried now even though I usually browse with VPN on
sites I do not trust? According to the article, it is possible to identify users by analyzing people's
browsing histories. The data that people perceive to be private might not be as private as they
think. Some companies may sell or buy users browsing data as to identify them. By analyzing the
browsing data which is usually equivalent to 10 web addresses, the analyzer can predict the
user's identity while they are online. This information can be used by the hacker or fake AI
advertising platform to track the sites one visits and hence devise a way to attack them.

38COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 2.10
Date: 10 February 2018
According to my last week browsing history, to a more significant extent, it reveals that I am
interested as a student. Most of my web addresses randomly extracted from previous week
history show that I visited academic sites, online libraries, talk show sites and online music
streaming sites. In that case, somebody can predict my status. However, there is regular research
on medical sites which could tell that either I have a chronic disease or somebody related to me
is suffering from a chronic illness. However, I do not support the idea of selling of personal
browsing data by Google. Privacy is paramount. It is not easy to identify if the people buying the
browsing data will use the data appropriately (Tynan 2015). In that case, people should be
allowed to sell their data when required.
References
Tynan, D. 2015. Computer privacy annoyances: How to avoid the most ANNOYING invasions
of your personal and online privacy. Sebastopol, Calif: O'Reilly.

39COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 2.11
Date: 11 February 2018
The Internet of things from the technical perspective depicts sensors can detect automatically the
physical activity and enabling the people to live their life independently. The Internet of Things
is beyond the electronics and IT which is used to dealing with all the objects in the world. The
Internet of Things from the social perspective depicts people seeking control over their health,
wellbeing, social connections and their lives that comes from having feeling competent and
purpose in their daily routines (Alessandro Soro 2017). Technologies have enabled the users to
control and manage their lives and relations in an appropriate manner. The Internet of Things
will enable users to manage their operations, an example use of RFID tagging.
Furthermore, Internet of Things is a technology that does not require human to computer or
computer and computer interaction. This concept will allow the objects to be regulated remotely.
The objects will exchange data with each other through the installation of sensors, actuators,
connectivity, software, and electronics. The communication of the things will be enhanced by
identifying them uniquely (Greengard 2015). Socially, the internet of things will help people
improve the security of objects by identifying and controlling the objects remotely. Individuals
will have a lot of time to socialize because a lot of time spent on manually operating objectives
will get saved through automation of processes. One will just be required to send information to
the object instructing it to perform a specific role.

40COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
References
Alessandro Soro, Aloha Hufana Ambe, and Margot Brereton 2017. Minding the gap:
Reconciling Human and Technical Perspectives on the for Healthy Ageing Available [Online]
(Accessed 11 February 2018)
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/wcmc/2017/7439361/
Greengard, S. 2015. The internet of things. Cambridge, Mass: MIT

41COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 2.12
Date 12 February 2018
Discuss what you have learned:
IoE has a lot of benefits to the entire world. Connecting people, processes, data and things will
ensure efficient manipulation of data to help us solve problems in life. IoT will enhance the
communication between the customers at a personal level to help the company come up with
better business models. The impact of IoE in the social life is to improve the social status of
people between their families and places of work (Snyder and Byrd 2017).
Discuss the social implications of the IoE. What are the ramifications for mass data
collection, privacy values and freedom of action?
The mass collection of data will help the companies to analyze data to come up with relevant
information. The privacy values, however, will be affected by the fact that data will be stored
and managed by a third party (Dejardin 2005). The freedom of action will get enhanced by IoE
through allowing people interact with devices at will.
Discuss whether or not you would like to live within an IoE environment.
Every technology has both advantages and disadvantages. IoE has many benefits than the
demerits, and hence I would like to live in IoE environments (Snyder and Byrd 2017). Some of
the advantages that I would love to enjoy in IoE environment is the security status involved with
the implementation of the technology.

42COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
References
Snyder, T., and Byrd, G. January 01, 2017. The Internet of Everything. Computer, 50, 6, 8-
9.Dejardin, J. (January 01, 2005). The IOE. Confronting Globalization: the Quest for a Social
Agenda: Geneva Lectures, 103-106.
Snyder, T., and Byrd, G. January 01, 2017. The Internet of Everything. Computer, 50, 6, 8-9.

43COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 3.2
Date: 12 February 2018
There are several ways in which passive RFID and active RFID gets utilized. The passive RFID
does not contain an internal power supply and uses the power of the RFID reader sent through
the signals. This type of device only sends the messages when powered by the reader. Some of
the applications of the passive RFID include human implants, RFID cards amongst other.
However, the active RFID consists of an internal power supply (Hawley 2004). This type of the
device sends off signals at any time according to the user's specification. Some of the application
of RFID includes car tracking, airplane identification, and others.
Reference
Hawley, A. January 01, 2004. RFID technology using active or passive tags, a boiling issue.
Traffic Engineering & Control, 45, 9, 324-326.

44COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 3.3
Date: 12 February 2018
When a single RFID reader simultaneously activates some RFIDs, there are chances of collision.
The collision occurs when more than one RFID broadcast their EPCs using the same radio
frequency (Tribowski and Tamm 2010). In this case, the system should employ an anti-collision
protocol called singulation protocol. The protocol works by only allowing one RFID to broadcast
an EPC to the RFID reader hence mitigating the risk of collision.
Reference
Tribowski, C., and Tamm, Gerrit 2010. RFID. Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg. Singulation
[Online] Available at https://www.revolvy.com/main/index.php?s=Singulation [Accessed 12
February 2018]

45COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 3.4
Date: 13 February 2018
A 96-bit EPC can store and identify 16,777,215 numbers of objects. However, a 96 bit EPC is
not sufficient to uniquely identify every person in the entire world (current population is at 7.6
billion by worldometers). There is a limitation. The manager of an organization should decide
the length of the EPC to use in his/her team. The range of the EPC dictates the number of
individuals is can uniquely identify. The longer the length of the EPC results in the higher the
number of the items to be uniquely identified (Picazo, Ortiz, Peris and Hernandez, 2013).
Reference
Picazo-Sanchez, P., Ortiz-Martin, L., Peris-Lopez, P., and Hernandez-Castro, J. C. January 01,
2013. Security of EPC Class-1.

46COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 3.5
Date: 13 February 2018
As a technical consultant, I would conduct an intensive investigation in this case. The employee
of the company would help me to identify the benefits of using the barcode style and the
demerits of using it. I would also research the RFID to understand the benefits the company
would gain by using it as well as the faults of using it. I would then form a presentation to all the
company members and the staff on the finding of the research. This research would convince
them to adopt the new technology. The allocated EPCs should get set on identifying the class of
the objects as well as identifying the items uniquely (Dobkin 2008).
Reference
Dobkin, D. M. 2008. The RF in RFID: Passive UHF RFID in practice. Amsterdam [u.a.:
Elsevier, Newnes.

47COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 3.6
Date: 13 February 2018
Different forms of RFID are commercially available. The RFID is designed to perform a specific
task. An RFID security tag is an RFID that is aimed at offering security to an organization by the
use of RFID. An animal RFID tag is aimed at identifying specific animals uniquely. This
technology has been used to keep track of the animal are facing the danger of extinction. An
RFID asset tracking tag helps to track assets (Yan 2008). This RFID has been used by the car
hirers to track the movement of their vehicle. A HIM RFID is used by the healthcare providers to
treat the patient by monitoring the frequencies and amount of medicine dosage the patient takes
in to enhance treatment.
Reference
Yan, L. 2008. The Internet of things: From RFID to the next-generation pervasive networked
systems. New York: Auerbach Publications.

48COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 3.7
Date: 13 February 2018
According to US 7,076,441 B2 patent search, it is possible to recognize and track people by the
use of RFID tagged objects present in stores. The identification takes effect through the objects
carried by the customers that contain RFID devices. When the customer buys the items for the
first time, the details of the purchase is collected and stored in a database through the POS
terminals. When the customer visits the store for the second time with the items of the previous
purchase, the RFIDs in them is scanned by an RFID scanner to obtain the RFID tag information
(FPO 2016). The correlation between the scanned data and the data in the database determines
the identity of the customer and this information helps to track the customer's movement in the
store.
As for the ethical concerns, I do not see many reasons why this patent is beneficial to the
customer with or without their consent; embedded RFID should be deactivated at the POS (Point
Of Sale). On the other hand, this technology can be useful in a case of marking up employee
attendance data as to avoid people from cheating.
Reference
FPO 2016. Identification and tracking of persons using RFID-tagged items in store
environments. Retrieved from http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7076441.html

49COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 3.8
Date: 14 February 2018
There are many issues relating the skimming and cloning of the RFID. Once an RFID get cloned,
somebody can gain unauthorized access to heavily secured departments in the organization. For
instance, through the cloned RFID that controls the entrance of the data centres; somebody could
tamper with personal information or hack into the system. This action is hazardous to an
organization. I believe that cloning provides a mechanism to invade into people's privacy (Zhao
et al., 2017). The RFID should get designed in a way that the data transmitted from the RFID to
the RFID reader are encrypted to avoid the cases of cloning.
Complex encryption technology along with other methods like authentications, chip-coating,
filtering and use of middle-ware should be effective in the mitigation of future attacks.
References
Zhao, Ju-min, Feng, Ding, Li, Deng-ao, Gong, Wei, Liu, Hao-xiang, and Huo, Shi-min. 2017.
Time-Efficient Cloning Attacks Identification in Large-Scale RFID Systems. "Unhackable"
RFID chip to keep your credit cards safe

50COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 3.9
Date: 14 February 2018
In a case where the RFID is implemented by the healthcare organization to help in the curing of
the diseases, there are ethical issues associated with it. It means that the data signals sent from
the RFID in the human body must be encrypted. If the data relayed through the signal is not
coded correctly, somebody can interfere with the data to provide wrong data with the intention of
causing harm to the individual that's being treated. In addition to that, if the RFID malfunctions
in the body without notice, the individual faces the chances of wrong treatment (Buyurgan et al.,
2010). This action can cause death or severe sickness. The RFID should get manufactured in a
way that they cannot either get hacked or malfunction thereby creating an adverse effect the
patient instead of treating the patient. On the other thought of mine, I think this procedure should
not be used for every patient but rather for only terminally ill patients that consent to it. Why tag
people like pigeons? It seems like stripping away the last vestiges of human freedom!
Reference
Buyurgan, N., Hardgrave, B. C., Lo, J. C., and Walker, R. T. January 01, 2010. RFID in
Healthcare.

51COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 3.10
Date: 14 February 2018
Yes. According to me, there is a significant difference between wearing a removable RFID tag,
non-removable tag as well as the implantation of an RFID. The human dignity must get
protected. Wearing a removable RFID tag preserves the human dignity by ensuring that in a case
of unauthorised interference with RFID, somebody can remove the tag to avoid further intrusion
into his privacy. Wearing a non-removable tag helps in securing an individual and tracking that
person in cases of kidnapping. Implantation helps in identifying employees that work in
dangerous, remote locations (Juels 2006).
Reference
Juels, A. February 01, 2006. RFID security and privacy: a research survey. Ieee Journal on
Selected Areas in Communications, 24, 2, 381-394.

52COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 3.11
Date: 14 February 2018
According to the videos provided, organizations can implant RFID in the employee bodies to
help them access the company building freely without the need to use of keys. The RFID is
suggested to replace wallets as it can get connected to the bank for withdrawal of money from
the bank at any time. The company, in this case, can control RFID on their own through the use
of the software (Gasson, Kosta 2012). The RFID get connected to the employee personal
information. However, there are challenges associated with the technology. Installing the chip in
hand involved surgery which means that in future, somebody will have to get various surgeries to
remove the chip and put a better one.
Reference
Gasson, M. N., Kosta, E., and Bowman, D. M. 2012. Human ICT implants: Technical, legal and
ethical considerations. The Hague: Asser.

53COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 3.12
Date: 15 February 2018
According to the article, the surveillance has helped the employers to track the actions of the
employee. A research shows conducted to tens of thousands of employees shows that the
employees being watched through the surveillance work enthusiastically. The employee fears
that they might get sacked by their employer for not being serious in their work. This enthusiasm
helps the company to improve the returns as most employees may end up stealing from the
employer who will end up causing losses to the company. The surveillance helps to curb this
issue. In a case where the employer requests the employees to implant chips in their hand-collect
data about the employee, just like the acceptance of surveillance, they will not have a choice
(Micheal and IGI Global 2014).
The public needs to be re-educated on the topic of privacy erosion with the use of all these
emerging new technologies. Yeah, it seems like new technologies are outpacing codes, ethics
and laws but we must advance with the times! A real discussion and debates should be heard.
The Federal government should enact and enforce laws that promote and supports privacy
protection as, Privacy Act and the Surveillance Devices Act.
Reference
Michael, K., and IGI Global, 2014. Uberveillance and the social implications of microchip
implants: Emerging technologies.

54COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 3.13
Date: 15 February 2018
Yes. I would be more than happy to have an implant in my body if I should work in an extremely
dangerous location or a cause that would make a huge positive difference to the lives of others.
Every technology has both the merits and demerits. It is good to weigh both sides and decide
whether to implement the technology or not. In my case, I think the challenges associated with
HIMs are less than the merits. It is better to have an implant in my body to access my company
rooms rather than use passcode. Somebody can forget the passcode. The security associated with
HIMs gives me courage that, the chip is essential (Habib and Muhammad 2014). The HIMs also
helps to improve the healthcare services. In most cases, the healthcare organizations use the
chips to collect data from the patient and relay the information to the healthcare provider. Don't
get me wrong; I can only consider all of the above in extreme case scenarios. Again, people
should not be forced to use it except in a situation where they need to monitor criminals and very
few medical cases!
Reference
Habib, Muhammad. 2014. A Sector Analysis for Rfid Human Implantation: Technical Analyses
for Privacy Enhancing Techniques. The International Institute for Science, Technology, and
Education (IISTE)

55COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
FAQ
Date: 16 February 2018
Just wondering what type of research format should we use for Coursework 2, APA style or
MLA guidelines?
What if my DB contributions are formally referenced?
How does this group project thingy work, I am interested in drone technology project?
AI Hype
Date: 16 February 2018
Currently, the world is using artificial intelligence to develop world best systems. In this case,
the development of a suitable computer system requires good developers, and this is why the
competition to employ somebody in the field is intense. However, there are many challenges
associated with artificial intelligence (e.g. lack of people's power), and in that case, it is
necessary to make sure that the team working to develop that technology is of high quality
(Pavšsic 2012).
References
Pavssicc, M. January 01, 2012. Artificial intelligence. Mm, 12, 4, 17-18.

56COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
China and Surveillance Glasses
Date: 16 February 2018
According to the article on the Chinese surveillance spectacles, it is evident that criminal cases
have gone up in the world. I would support the idea of wearing glasses to catch criminals that
have terrorized the country without being recognized by the authority. Technology should be
employed to reduce theft cases. There are issues associated with surveillance as a way of
identifying individuals. One of the problems is hyperface where a criminal concentrates the
camera away from his face making him not recognized by the camera (Deaver, Guidall and
Recorded Books 2013).
References
Deaver, J., Guidall, G and Recorded Books, LLC. 2013. Surveillance. Prince Frederick, MD:
Recorded Books.

57COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 2.7 Extra question BCS Accreditation
Date: 17 February 2018
I agree that we have a responsibility to gain professional status from recognized bodies.
It is so worthwhile to be accredited by a recognized third-party bodies example BCS.
If University qualification in itself is all that enough, I don't think such bodies would ever
consider existing!
The benefits of this kind of profession status are that you will have studied using the curriculum
that suits you to good/better job positions, wider career prospects, training opportunities,
nurturing of networks and the assessments to range the ability to work are of high quality. In
conclusion, I believe the University of Derby Online understands the importance and value of
gaining professional status from recognized bodies, that's why most of their programs are already
accredited or still seeking accreditation status from those recognized bodies (BCS) example, BSc
(Honours) in Computing and IT top-up.

58COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 2.11 Response
Date: 17/02/2018
Hi Henry, Filipe and all,
Of course, it is no brainer that there are many security measures to consider before IOT fantasy
can be implemented. There are still big unanswered questions to examine example, which will
control all the private information, the government, individuals or big corporations? Another
concern is safety since everything will be interconnected with the internet; it means that there
will be endless possibilities of hackers attacking different systems. Just like Dr Cerf on the
article, I am very optimistic that with the current and future scientists, efforts can be made to
combat these issues because IOT is the new future and reality.
As for job losses, I have this to say - change is constant, people, codes, laws should be adjusted
to catch up with the advance of the times. Centuries ago, this very same controversial topic on
the use new technologies taking over unskilled jobs were debated during the advent of
automobiles because horse movers were worried about being displaced. Today, automobiles
have created more jobs more than what it has displaced.

59COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 1.8
Date: 18 February 2018
Hi Matt, thanks for sharing the article...it gave me closure on why Google is not operating in
China. Keyword there is censorship. It was so alien to me when I could not access Google while
I was there.
Activity 4.1
Date: 18/02/2018
It is important to note that biometric data is essential in enforcing security. The biometric data
involves collecting, recording and storing biodata of an individual to use it later for security
validation and verification. I have given biometric data (fingerprints patterns) to the electoral
body to verify my identity during voting. I was not given a choice in this case, because it was the
only method required during balloting. I also had provided an iris recognition data at the airport
security department which I suspect they will likely share my data and travel destinations with
Interpol a proxy of France and US. I have also used voice recognition data to lock and unlock my
mobile phone to enforce security (Wilson, Grother, Chandramouli and Information Technology
Laboratory 2007). However, while using biometric data while operating my phone, I had a
choice of using a password.
Reference
Wilson, C., Grother, P., Chandramouli, R., and Information Technology Laboratory (National
Institute of Standards and Technology) 2007. Biometric data specification for Personal Identity

60COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Verification. Gaithersburg, MD: Information Technology Laboratory, U.S. Dept. of Commerce,
Technology Administration, National Institute of Standards and Technology.

61COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 4.2
Date: 19/02/2018
In a case of FNMR, the staff should increase the t-value. FNMR is a case where the biometric
data collected from one individual are inferred by the system to recognize two individuals. T-
value represents the score of similarities. The higher the value of similarity results in a more
chance of identification by the system. Resolving FNMR should by changing t-value get
implemented with lots of care because a tremendous amount would result in FNM. In this case,
the system will identify two individuals from the same biometric data (Schuckers 2010).
Reference
Schuckers, M. E. January 01, 2010. False Non-Match Rate.

62COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 4.3
Date: 19/02/2018
There are many risks associated with biometric data. For instance, the biometric data collected
through fingerprint can get lifted from the object used for the purpose and hence gain access to
the system. Some of the things that help in the collection of prints include the sticky and gooey
materials. Another risk associated with biometric data collected through fingerprint is that some
individual who is involved in hard labor might lose the data and get blocked by the system. One
of the ways to avoid the loss of fingerprints is to advise the individuals on the best ways to
protect the data. The data collected should always be encrypted to prevent malicious attack by
the intruders (ICBA, Zhang and Jain 2004).
Reference
ICBA 2004, Zhang, D., and Jain, A. K. 2004. Biometric authentication: First international
conference, ICBA 2004, Hong Kong, China, July 15-17, 2004: proceedings. Berlin: Springer.

63COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 4.4
19/02/2018
In many schools, biometric data is not collected to secure the computer systems. In this case,
many people can intrude into the system. The cyber-attack impacts the students by instilling
unreliability issues and hence the students cannot trust the system. Biometric data can help the
school to secure the library because it is not easy to duplicate biometric data taken from a
specific student. The students should get trained on how to protect biometric data. Diagnostic
techniques should also get implemented to ensure that the individuals who cannot be identified
by the system can use alternative ways. The school should not collect biometric data without
involving the parents (Conti, Martínez, Seepold and Orcioni 2016).
Reference
Conti, M., In Martínez, M. N., In Seepold, R., and In Orcioni, S. 2016. Mobile Networks for
Biometric Data Analysis.

64COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 4.4 Comments and FAQs
20/02/2018
Hi Mohammed and all,
If you hold the belief that Passcodes, password and pins offer the higher level of security than
fingerprints because of it being easily retained in mind. I am not too sure I agree with that notion
because passcodes can easily be stolen or forgotten whereas not so with fingerprints. Yeah, the
security issues of bio-metrics still seem like a game of mouse and cat but I think fingerprints are
less prone to theft than passcodes. I am concerned about fingerprints data protection, who do you
think should protect them...institutions, government or individuals? Please share your thoughts if
you can.
Hi Matt and all,
For Passport and immigration matters, some countries including the USA collect and retain bio-
metrics data. These data are collected, stored and shared with a centralized system for security
measures and countering of fraud.

65COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 4.6
Date: 20/02/2018
There are several ways in which somebody can thwart applications where individuals use the
fingerprint scanner to gain access to the system. One of how an individual can use identity theft
to gain access to the form is by use of silicon gel to make a copy of the fingerprint patterns. The
second technique is making a copy of the fingerprints using a tape. The third method involves
fooling the scanner using the text of the fingerprint patterns by the use of gelatin (Scotland
2009). The fourth method is the use of 3D - printed rubber mold to bypass a fingerprint scanner,
the mold is usually developed from stored finger sample and not the real one. A well-
photocopied fingerprint can also help gain access to the application. The other technique is
cadaver finger where the finger of the individual is chopped and used to gain access.
Reference
Scotland 2009. Acquisition and retention of DNA and fingerprint data in Scotland: Consultation
report. Edinburgh: Scottish Government.

66COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 4.7
Date: 20/02/2018
It has been noted that criminals can chop off an individual finger or force someone to make use
of their biometric data (fingerprint) as to gain access to their system. In many cases, the theft is
in a way that before the reporting is made to the system, the criminals will have gained access
already. However, the methods have been upgraded to deal with this issue through the
introduction of functionality that test for the temperatures. However, it is possible to bypass this
problem by introducing an external heat to the finger before using it to gain access (the United
States 2011). This action is a disadvantage of using biometric data to gain access to systems.
Reference
The United States. 2011. The FBI fingerprint identification automation program: Issues and
options. Washington, DC: Congress of the U.S., Office of Technology Assessment.

67COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 4.8
Date: 20/02/2018
Hyperface project is the ability of an individual to confuse the image identification by focusing
the system on the surrounding images rather than the targeted one. This approach reduces the
strength of the system to identify a particular individual. Criminals use this method to thwart the
system without being detected. Another approach to preventing the application of the CCTV is
by the use of LED light pointed directly to the lens of the surveillance camera. The third
technique is blocking the face using the steady light. According to the research, CCTV
surveillance is not enough to enhance the security in a public space. When individual use the
camouflage mechanisms to conceal their images, it becomes difficult for the system to identify
his identity (Ranjan, Patel and Chellappa 2017).
Reference
Ranjan, R., Patel, V. M., & Chellappa, R. December 07, 2017. HyperFace: A Deep Multi-task
Learning Framework for Face Detection, Landmark Localization, Pose Estimation, and Gender
Recognition. Ieee Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence

68COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 4.10
Date: 21/02/2018
Countries such as the USA are currently collecting DNA data which they intend to use during
their investigations. There are various ways in which DNA data collected can be used to benefit
both the individual and the agencies that receive the data. For instance, DNA analysis can be
used for immigration purposes to determine immigrants and refugees family map in a case where
documentation and interviews are deemed insufficient. This can be so beneficial to refugees,
whom must have lost all their belongings at their home countries, thus giving them a chance to
reunite with family members while reducing huge cost of the process for the host government.
Another instance, In USA DNA obtained data, can be used by the courts while investigating
different cases. In a case where the prosecutor of the court cannot prove the case correctly, the
DNA forms excellent evidence sitting area to help solve the case. In a case where the individual
has incriminated, the DNA data can help to prove that indeed; the suspect did or did not commit
an offence (the United States 2006). However, there are chances of being impersonated through
your DNA data being placed in crime scenes intentionally to frame you.
Reference
The United States. 2006. DNA collection. Washington, DC: Court Services and Offender
Supervision Agency for the District of Columbia.

69COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 4.11
Date: 21/02/2018
One of the merits of the systems that operate on a biometric identifier is that they are secure. It is
essential to note that at the moment, a combination of various biometric data to verify the system
is not easy to thwart the system. However, according to research, this won't take long. When
security improves, the theft cases and techniques also grow to challenge the outcome. In some
years to come, gaining access to a system that uses biometric data will be just like the case of
password cracking. The systems that use a secure password with lower and upper cases of the
characters plus numbers are hard to gain excess (Mohan, Kanagasabai, and Pandu 2017).
However, there is a chance of gaining access to the use of brutal force.
Reference
Mohan, J., Kanagasabai, A., and Pandu, V. January 01, 2017. Advances in Biometrics for Secure
Human Authentication System.

70COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 4.12
Date: 22/02/2018
There are many benefits of biometric data collected and recorded by the government agencies
such as improving security and identification of individuals by the government. However, there
are very many issues to privacy in regards to the usage of biometric data. In most cases, the
individuals do not ascribe to the aspect of people collecting and storing biometric data which can
be accessed by a third party because somebody can use this information to their advantages.
When the data is also lost, there are chances of somebody gaining access to the application
assume to be somebody else to the system (ICBA, Zhang and Jain, 2004). Biometric data raises
the issues of being compromised and using the data to track somebody's movement hence
infringing on their privacy.
Reference
ICBA 2004, Zhang, D., and Jain, A. K. 2004. Biometric authentication: First international
conference, ICBA 2004, Hong Kong, China, July 15-17, 2004: proceedings. Berlin: Springer.

71COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Activity 4.13
Date: 22/02/2018
I would react well to a case where biometric data is to be collected to enhance the security of the
system in the organization. My decision will depend on the severity of the importance of the
cause; I cannot casually agree to such new development or be forced by my employer to do so.
Yeah, biometric data remains a better validation mechanism compared to the use of a password
to gain access to the system. However, if I eventually agree I would have several suggestions to
the management team regarding how the data is collected, stored and manipulated by the team.
The biometric data should be appropriately collected, stored securely, and managed for the
company's good as well as the individual's good to benefit the organization (Seal, Bhattacharjee,
Nasipuri and Basu, 2018). In the USA and some parts of Africa, there are people with strong
religious convictions who believe that collection of their bio-metrics data fulfils an end-time
prophecy (666 that is Mark of the beast movement) according to the written scriptures.
Reference
Seal, A., Bhattacharjee, D., Nasipuri, M., and Basu, D. K. January 01, 2018. Thermal Human
Face Recognition for Biometric Security System

72COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
References
Section 1:
Ahson, S.A. and Ilyas, M., 2017. RFID handbook: applications, technology, security, and
privacy. CRC press.
Bansal, N., Mahajan, M. and Bhushan, S., 2015. Comparison of Techniques for Plagiarism
Detection in Document Images: A Review. European Journal of Advances in Engineering and
Technology, 2(5), pp.27-31.
Freed, D., Palmer, J., Minchala, D., Levy, K., Ristenpart, T. and Dell, N., 2017. Digital
technologies and intimate partner violence: a qualitative analysis with multiple
stakeholders. Proceedings of the ACM: Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social
Computing, 1(1), p.46.
Gawali, S.Z. and Thakore, D.M., 2017. EMAS Framework For Text Plagarism Detection
(Evolutionary Multi-Agent System). International Journal of Applied Engineering
Research, 12(8), pp.1584-1590.
Harper, C.D., Hendrickson, C.T. and Samaras, C., 2018. Exploring the Economic,
Environmental, and Travel Implications of Changes in Parking Choices Due to Driverless
Vehicles (No. 18-03126).
Uzo, C.C., 2015. Method of making secure electronic payments using communications devices
and biometric data. U.S. Patent 9,177,314.

73COMPUTING TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIETY
Section- 2:
Shaw, I.G., 2016. Predator empire: drone warfare and full spectrum dominance. University of
Minnesota Press.
Vizcaino, J., 2016. Wildlife Telemetry Drone Project.