Information Technology Ethics: Facebook Data Privacy Analysis

This essay analyzes the ethical implications of Facebook's data privacy practices, focusing on the 'EnforceTheOrder' campaign launched by EPIC. The essay explores the application of four classical ethical theories: utilitarianism, deontology, virtue theory, and contractual theory. It examines how these theories can be used to assess Facebook's actions regarding user data, privacy settings, and potential breaches. The essay critiques Facebook's handling of data, its relationship with the FTC, and its responsibilities to its users. The analysis considers the consequences of Facebook's actions, the adherence to moral duties, the character of the company, and the fulfillment of contractual obligations. The conclusion summarizes the findings and recommends improvements in data security and privacy policies to protect user rights.

Running head: INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ETHICS
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ETHICS
Name of the Student
Name of the Organization
Author Note

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Introduction
The case study is seen to be based upon the investigation’s reopening over Facebook
which has been named as “EnforceTheOrder”. This particular campaign is seen to have been
launched by EPIC or the Electronic Privacy Information Center mainly for the purpose of
ensuring the appropriate law as well as order within the utilisation of the platform of social
media (FTC: Enforce the Order, 2019). The basic or rather the primary urge of this particular
campaign has been urging for the Federal Trade Commission for the main purpose of
implementing the act before the date 26th of March in the year 2019 (Herschel & Miori, 2017).
This specific report has been seen to base upon the main understanding of this specific case and
also the purpose of the implementation of knowledge from all the four ethical theories which are
classical which is going to be put together for ensuring all the several outcomes which is seen to
be possible from this particular scenario.
Utilitarianism Theory
As per the particular theory of Utilitarianism, it is seen to be mainly defining the main
locus of all the actions involving all the correct and the wrong one which will actually be the
outcomes.
As per the particular case which has to be supported, it can be defined that there are a
number of complaints about the ignorance of all kinds of settings which are related to privacy
and has been seen to be reported to Facebook (Körner & Volk, 2014). Facebook is seen to
commit a large number of crimes related to the gathering of the data regarding health and also
leaking all of them without any kind of prior information for all the users.

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This can be considered to be hugely unethical and this will be leading to a huge number
of serious implications for all the people as well as the enterprise. Hence, Facebook must have
been fined for all such sort of acts (DeVellis, 2016). A very serious law is needed to be
implicated within the enterprise by the Government and this will be very much helpful for
bringing much better outcomes for all the people.
Deontology Theory
A particular theory is seen to be defined as a theory which will be ethical, when it will be
making use of certain kinds of rules for the main purpose of differentiating all the right actions
from that of the wrong ones. The theory which has been proposed will be needing several people
for following certain kinds of rules and thus duty will be performed by them.
From this particular case study, it can be said that there has been a major failure of FTC
for launching the implementation of a specific law (Berreby, Bourgne & Ganascia, 2017). This
law will be taken by a single action of enforcement against the enterprise mainly for establishing
both law as well as order within the social community over the internet.
This can be hence regarded as a huge negative impact because FTC do not give any kind
of importance to all the pleas and of all the people. There is a particular obligation of Facebook
which is highly related to morality foe keeping up with all the business’s promises and thus will
be ensuring that the website’s privacy must be maintained in a much better way. Therefore, the
FTC must have understood all the people’s complaints and thus must be taking a number of
stringent actions for dealing with all the issues which will be raised.

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Virtue Theory
The ethics of virtue can be defined as normative theories which will be related to ethics
and this will be emphasizing the virtues of both mind as well as character. All the ethicists who
are seen to be following the theory of virtue will be able to discuss both the definition as well as
the nature of different values and several other forms of all the problems related (Stufflebeam &
Coryn, 2014). A virtue can be defined as a trait of character which can be involving several
habitual actions which are habitual or some kind of statement which is settled.
As per the case study, the theory of virtue can be in huge support with the particular role
of Facebook because they have imposed some specific actions after the crime has been actually
committed. The particular decision can be supported hugely in terms of the theory of virtue as a
fine which will be directly imposed over the website and this will be seen to be quite critical. The
enterprise does not implement all the security measures in a hurry.
This is very much important as the particular rate at which data has been breached is
considered to be quite high as all the actions which are taken are considered (Koven, 2015).
Several actions which are seen to be taken under the theory of virtue can be considered to be
against the particular theory. All such changes can be done by implementing several forms of the
processes of encryption in the entire system. For the implementation of such systems, the
enterprise will be able to both implement as well as set several new policies related to security as
per all the standards which are latest. This will be very much advantageous for the enterprise in
protecting all the rights of data as well as the data privacy of all the people.

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Contractual Theory
According to the Contractual theory, it can be said that there are a number of ways where
several organizations as well as people will be capable of delivering several agreements which
will be legal in several situations which may be highly critical. There will also be a number of
situations which will be bringing huge number of factors which will be totally unknown
(Sandler, 2013). The contractual theory can be applied to various organizations within which
there will be a main factor. All other agents or rather contracts will also be created by a single
specific individual or rather an organization which will be capable of specifying several
agreements in between several multiple parties which can even include all several contracts
which have been created by a number employees.
The FTC is seen to have announced depending upon the reopening of the particular case
which will be related to a number of practices which are illegal that are seen to be occurring
within the enterprise. Depending upon the contractual theory, all of such actions can be
supported because FTC has been seen to be quite late while taking any kind of actions against
the enterprise. The particular decision which has been taken by FTC cannot be supported after
they have taken any kind of actions because late action declaration cannot prove important or
vital regarding all the issues which are ethical.
It is very much important for the entire company to take appropriate actions in the correct
time and this will be very much advantageous for both the organization as well as all the people
which will be involved within the enterprise (Kosters & Van der Heijden, 2015). The company
has been seen to have incremented the website’s security to a great extent after there has been a
huge growth of certain kinds of statements. Therefore, a huge number of people are highly

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affected when the breach has been noticed. This late high security implementation in the website
has been seen to be proved as a dangerous factor for both the company as well as its reputation.
Conclusion
Dependent upon all the factors which have been discussed, it can be directly concluded
that by implementing “EnforceTheOrder”, it will be helping a lot in offering several benefits for
all the people who are seen to be making use of the particular platform of social networking.
Hence, for incrementing the platform’s security, the enterprise can make use of different kinds of
ways which will be helping a lot in incrementing the policy of a breach related to safety. All the
concerns related to privacy for the specific application can be hugely improved by directly
following all the exact standards related to security. Both order as well as law must be
maintained within the platform of social networking because it will be containing huge essential
data of people. Revision of several standards related to security on a regular basis will be very
much helpful for developing stability of all the platforms of security.

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References
Körner, A., & Volk, S. (2014). Concrete and abstract ways to deontology: Cognitive capacity
moderates construal level effects on moral judgments. Journal of Experimental Social
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Sandler, R. L. (2013). Environmental virtue ethics. International Encyclopedia of Ethics.
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FTC: Enforce the Order. (2019). Retrieved from https://epic.org/enforce-the-order/
Kosters, M., & Van der Heijden, J. (2015). From mechanism to virtue: Evaluating Nudge
theory. Evaluation, 21(3), 276-291.
Herschel, R., & Miori, V. M. (2017). Ethics & big data. Technology in Society, 49, 31-36.
Koven, S. G. (2015). Public sector ethics: Theory and applications. Routledge.
Stufflebeam, D. L., & Coryn, C. L. (2014). Evaluation theory, models, and applications (Vol.
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Berreby, F., Bourgne, G., & Ganascia, J. G. (2017, May). A declarative modular framework for
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