CSU Assignment: Cyber Crime & Software Theft in ICT - Ethics

This essay critically examines the ethical dimensions of cyber crime and software theft within the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector, employing three distinct ethical perspectives: professional, philosophical, and sociological/descriptive ethics. It analyzes a scenario involving a member of an ICT team who compromises professional ethics by selling company software to a rival firm. The analysis delves into how this action violates the principles of professionalism, integrity, and confidentiality, as defined by professional ethics. Furthermore, the essay explores the philosophical ethics, highlighting the inherent mal ethics in stealing and selling proprietary software, arguing that such actions are ethically and legally unjustifiable. Finally, the sociological perspective considers the broader societal impact, emphasizing the disruption of social order and trust caused by unethical behavior within the ICT sector. The essay references various academic sources to support its arguments and provide a comprehensive ethical evaluation of the case.

SCHOOL OF COMPUTING AND MATHS, Charles Sturt University
Cyber Crime and Software Theft at Workplace in ICT Sector
Assignment 1: Three Distinct Perspectives of Applied Ethics
NOMULA SANDEEP GOUD
Student Number
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Cyber Crime and Software Theft at Workplace in ICT Sector
1. Introduction
Ethical Issues are defined as those kind of issues that have moral dilemmas in their
determination of the act in either the basis of right or wrong (Niebuhr, 2013). The ethical
issues of the workplace at the ICT Sector can be many out of which cybercrime and crime
related to the theft of the office software for personal benefit is of prime importance
(Sorokin, 2017). Applied Ethics which can be defined as the form of ethics with morality and
controversial selections can be divided into three types of perspectives depending upon the
way in which the ethical theories are being adhered namely Professional Ethics,
Philosophical Ethics and Sociological or Descriptive Ethics (Nussbaum, 2013). In the
following essay, the three types of ethical perspectives are used to decipher the ethical
issues that are one of the pivotal at workplace of an Information and Communication
Technology office sector which is cybercrime and theft of the office software for personal
use. The workplace that has been mentioned here is any workplace that deals with the
above issue and is related to the Information and Communication Technology.
2. Professional Ethics Perspectives
The standard of behavior that is being expected by professionals in both their personal
and corporate code of conduct is termed is Professional Perspectives of Ethics (Dent &
Whitehead, 2013). The various code of conduct that the professional ethics perspective
mentions are the three factors of Professionalism, Integrity with the people and the
Confidentiality maintained by the people working in the ethical scenario. These kind of
professional ethics are needed for the maintenance of the decorum and the decency level in
the office premises. The importance of the professional ethics lies in the fact that without
the professional ethics, it is not possible to sustain in a professional scenario and also to
effectively run the business amidst the steep competition of the peers and counterparts.
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Cyber Crime and Software Theft at Workplace in ICT Sector
The professional ethics perspective is one of the main issues that is faced by one of the
member of the workplace (Durkheim, 2013). The member is an integral part of the
Information Technology and Communication team who is expected to perform in a
professional way in front of the clients and also to maintain the code of conduct that is
there in the office both in the professional and personal matter.
Professionalism has not been maintained by the member of the company which is the
first criteria of the professional code of conduct in the ethics. The professional behavior of
the people of the company relates to the fact that the member will maintain a decent and
cordial relation with the company as well as the client (Fromm, 2013). The member has
nowhere maintained the professionalism in the matter and has given the software of the
company to the rival brand which has made the behavior of the professional person against
the professionalism.
Integrity which is another feature of the professional ethics sector is also being
hampered in the case study. The selling of the confidential software from the workplace to
the rival firm hampers the integrity of the workplace and also with the colleagues. The way
that integrity is being hampered in the workplace is the fact that with the selling and the
hampering of the private information, there is a chance that every single aim of integrating
the workplace and the workers is being hampered in the place (Pope, 2016). The betrayal of
the member to the overall workplace makes the factor of integrity hampered to a major
extent in the workplace of the company as well as to the sector of information technology
and communication.
The member has not maintained one of the principle ethics of professional behavior in
the code of conduct scenario which is maintenance of confidentiality. The member has
given the secrets of the company including the chief software on which the workings of the
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Cyber Crime and Software Theft at Workplace in ICT Sector
company is being done (Fisher, 2012). The rival company who has bought the software from
the member has paid a huge amount of the person and also has asked him not to reveal the
name. Therefore, in this way the confidentiality of the professional ethics part has been
hampered by the member.
3. Philosophical Ethics Perspectives
Philosophical ethics is defined as the branch of ethics that is related to the systematic,
defending and recommendation of the whole matter in relation to the event being right or
wrong (Gasper, 2016). The whole concept of philosophical ethics relate to the fact of mal
ethics and normative ethics. The whole practice of mal ethics and normative ethics refers to
the fact of the right and wrong in terms of the whole system is determined on the practice
of right and wrong. The philosophical ethics refers to the system in which the people of the
ethical family are given the required philosophical notes of the same.
The importance of philosophical ethics lies in the fact that with the philosophical
implications for the working of the matter, it is required to be philosophically true for the
case. The whole situation of the ethical issue for the Information and Communication
Technology lies in the fact that the stealing of the software for the office purpose and
utilizing it for the personal use of the person is unethical to the very fact. In addition, the
selling of the same to the rival company is surely one of the matters that deserve mention in
the sense. The whole matter for the fact is to make sure that the ethical mode of conducting
the fact is being given and is to be provided to make sure that philosophical part of the
ethical observation is being adopted.
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Cyber Crime and Software Theft at Workplace in ICT Sector
The philosophical ethics makes sure that the whole matter is judged based upon the mal
ethics of the matter and the normative ethics of the situation (Gardelli, Alerby & Persson,
2014). The condition in question is surely a mal ethics in the matter as the member of the
working has sold the software that is to be used in the matter to the rival company which is
not permitted under any cost. The philosophical ethics of the whole situation makes for the
fact that the crime is under the law of justice and ethically incorrect to have any kind of
problem in the whole matter.
The total situation of selling the required amount of workplace property, either physical
or intellectual is to the matter of giving the required amount of workplace part to the rival
company is surely not one of the things that should be considered in the matter. The
philosophical ethics lies in the fact that the amount of problem that each of the company
has with the confidentiality of the employees in given the fact of malpractice (Harriss,
MacSween & Atkinson, 2017). The whole matter of selling the software of the company to
the rival company in return for money is one of the major mal practice that can be
measured in terms of the philosophical ethics of the matter. The whole matter of giving
away the morale of the employee is anti-philosophical in every matter of the term which
makes it one of the ethics that should not be followed under any circumstances.
The matter is to be provided to the higher authorities and is against the ethical issues of
the person in every matter of the term. The philosophical notes of the whole matter is
against the policies of the workplace that measures the amount that is to be noted against
the philosophical policies of the workplace ethics and the morality of the whole issue. The
moral perspective of the same is to be measured in accordance to the rule and should also
be manifested for the amount to be made mandatory.
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Cyber Crime and Software Theft at Workplace in ICT Sector
4. Sociological/Descriptive Ethics Perspectives
Sociology is defined as one of the pivotal aspects of the social science that deals with the
relations and the responsibilities of the social relationship, society and the institutions of
the society. The social ethics is described as the ethical behavior that is being done for
the society and comprises of all the matters related to the fact of the social order of the
social institution. The social institution comprises of all the factors that is related to the
society and the social institutions and makes sure to incorporate the various matters in
the fact.
The whole matter of selling the software to the rival business company in return for
some money and also to make sure that each of the members of the organization is
getting their morality checked for the crime that is being conducted in the matter is to
make sure that the company and the members of the organization are given proper
heads in the matter. The event of the organization in the matter of the case is given
heads in the whole case. The member of the organization who is given the matter to get
into the whole case and has conducted the crime of selling the required amount of the
matter to the rival company has made a crime against the sociological ethics in the
manner.
The sociological ethics refers to the whole matter of conducting the business in the
organization and also given the required amount of rewards in the end. The person who
has conducted the crime of selling the privacy to another institutions is liable for the
whole matter of conducting the sociological mistake of ethics and is strictly against it. So
the whole matter of selling the software falls under the disruption of the sociological
ethics.
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Cyber Crime and Software Theft at Workplace in ICT Sector
5. References
(Remember to cite the media article that you are using and also the text book)
Dent, M., & Whitehead, S. (Eds.). (2013). Managing professional identities: Knowledge,
performativities and the'new'professional (Vol. 19). Routledge. Available at
https://bit.ly/2OtkG0S
Durkheim, E. (2013). Professional ethics and civic morals. Routledge. Available at
https://bit.ly/2P1NJdh
Fisher, C. B. (2012). Decoding the ethics code: A practical guide for psychologists. Sage
Publications. Available at https://bit.ly/2vT7aMk
Fromm, E. (2013). Man for himself: An inquiry into the psychology of ethics. Routledge.
Available at https://bit.ly/2KJ62k2
Gardelli, V., Alerby, E., & Persson, A. (2014). Why philosophical ethics in school: implications
for education in technology and in general. Ethics and Education, 9(1), 16-28.
Available at https://bit.ly/2KJ62k2
Gasper, D. (2016). Ethics of development. Available at https://bit.ly/2Mhsx4u
Harriss, D. J., MacSween, A., & Atkinson, G. (2017). Standards for ethics in sport and exercise
science research: 2018 update. International journal of sports medicine, 38(14),
1126-1131. Available at https://bit.ly/2Oti9nz
Niebuhr, R. (2013). Moral man and immoral society: A study in ethics and politics.
Westminster John Knox Press. Available at https://bit.ly/2B3TrZ6
Nussbaum, M. C. (2013). The therapy of desire: Theory and practice in Hellenistic ethics.
Princeton University Press. Available at https://bit.ly/2MiwVQF
Pope, K. S. (2016). The code not taken: The path from guild ethics to torture and our
continuing choices. Canadian Psychology/Psychologie canadienne, 57(1), 51.
Available at https://bit.ly/2MiwVQF
Sorokin, P. (2017). Social and cultural dynamics: A study of change in major systems of art,
truth, ethics, law and social relationships. Routledge. Available at
https://bit.ly/2Opwv8r
Do not remove the following marking sheet.
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Cyber Crime and Software Theft at Workplace in ICT Sector
Marking Sheet
Criteria Standards
Marks
awarde
d
Use professional,
philosophical, and
sociological/descripti
ve ethics
perspectives to
analyse the ethical
issues involved in
the case.
(Value 70%)
HD: Comprehensive understanding of the professional, philosophical, and
sociological/descriptive ethics perspectives through in-depth discussion
and analysis of three most relevant ethical issues involved in your chosen
case. (59.5-70)
DI: Mostly comprehensive understanding of the professional,
philosophical, and sociological/descriptive ethics perspectives through in-
depth discussion and analysis of three most relevant ethical issues
involved in your chosen case. (52.5-58.8)
CR: Some understanding of the professional, philosophical, and
sociological/descriptive ethics perspectives through some discussion and
analysis of two relevant ethical issues involved in your chosen case.
(45.5-51.8)
PS: Basic understanding of the professional, philosophical, and
sociological/descriptive ethics perspectives through some discussion and
analysis of two relevant ethical issues involved in your chosen case. (35-
44.8)
FL: Major omissions in understanding of the professional, philosophical,
and sociological/descriptive ethics perspectives and irrelevant ethical
issues are identified and analysed. (0-34.3)
Writing & structure
(Value 20%)
HD: Language features and structures are used to convey meaning
effectively, concisely, unambiguously, and in a tone appropriate to the
audience and purpose with no spelling, grammatical, or punctuation
errors. (17-20)
DI: Well developed skills in expression & presentation of ideas. Fluent
writing style appropriate to assessment task/document type. Grammar &
spelling accurate. (15-16.8)
CR: Good skills in expression & clear presentation of ideas. Mostly fluent
writing style appropriate to assessment task/document type. Grammar &
spelling contains a few minor errors. (13-14.8)
PS: The text contains frequent errors in spelling, grammar, word choice,
and structure, lacks clarity, and is not concise, but the meaning is
apparent to the reader with some effort. (10-12.8)
FL: Rudimentary skills in expression & presentation of ideas. Not all
material is relevant &/or is presented in a disorganised manner. Meaning
apparent, but writing style not fluent or well organised. Grammar &
spelling contains many errors. (0-9.8)
Referencing
(Value 10%)
HD: Referencing is comprehensive, demonstrates academic integrity, and
conforms exactly to APA style conventions. (8.5-10)
DI: Very good referencing, including reference list and citations. High
quality references. (7.5-8.4)
CR: Good referencing, including reference list and citations. Good quality
references. (6.5-7.4)
PS: Referencing is comprehensive, mostly accurate according to APA
style conventions, and demonstrates academic integrity. Some minor
errors or omissions in style and formatting choices (e.g. italics,
punctuation, etc) don’t impact on the transparency and traceability of the
source, or demonstration of academic integrity. (5-6.4)
FL: Sub-standard (or no) referencing. Poor quality (or no) references. (0-
4.9)
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Cyber Crime and Software Theft at Workplace in ICT Sector
Total Marks
NOMULA SANDEEP GOUD