---
title: "Computer ethics"
chunk: 2/2
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_ethics"
category: "reference"
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
date_saved: "2026-05-05T04:22:44.362896+00:00"
instance: "kb-cron"
---

== Concerns ==
Computer crime, privacy, anonymity, freedom, and intellectual property fall under topics that will be present in the future of computer ethics.
Ethical considerations have been linked to the Internet of Things (IoT) with many physical devices being connected to the internet.
Virtual Crypto-currencies in regards to the balance of the current purchasing relationship between the buyer and seller.
Autonomous technology such as self-driving cars forced to make human decisions. There is also concern over how autonomous vehicles would behave in different countries with different culture values.
Security risks have been identified with cloud-based technology with every user interaction being sent and analyzed to central computing hubs. Artificial intelligence devices like the Amazon Alexa and Google Home are collecting personal data from users while at home and uploading it to the cloud. Apple's Siri and Microsoft's Cortana smartphone assistants are collecting user information, analyzing the information, and then sending the information back to the user.

=== Internet privacy ===

Computers and information technology have caused privacy concerns surrounding collection and use of personal data. For example, Google was sued in 2018 for tracking user location without permission. also In July 2019, Facebook reached a $5 billion settlement with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission for violating an agreement with the agency to protect user privacy.
An industry of privacy and ethical tools has grown over time, giving people the choice to not share their data online. These are often open source software, which allows the users to ensure that their data is not saved to be used without their consent.

=== Artificial intelligence ===

== Ethical standards ==
Various national and international professional societies and organizations have produced code of ethics documents to give basic behavioral guidelines to computing professionals and users. They include:

Association for Computing Machinery
ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct
Australian Computer Society
ACS Code of Ethics
ACS Code of Professional Conduct
British Computer Society
BCS Code of Conduct
Code of Good Practice (retired May 2011)
German Informatics Society
Ethical Guidelines of the German Informatics Society (revised June 29, 2018)
Computer Ethics Institute
Ten Commandments of Computer Ethics
IEEE
IEEE Code of Ethics
IEEE Code of Conduct
League of Professional System Administrators
The System Administrators' Code of Ethics

== See also ==
Cyberethics
Ethics of artificial intelligence
Copyright infringement
Programming ethics
Social informatics
Ten Commandments of Computer Ethics
Who Controls the Internet?

== References ==

== Further reading ==

== External links ==

American Philosophical Association's Newsletter on Philosophy and Computers.
A short history of computer ethics
Ethics in Computing - a list of links to ethical discussions in Computer Science courtesy of North Carolina State University Undergraduates with guidance from Dr. Edward F. Gehringer
IEG, the Information Ethics research Group at Oxford University
Bynum, Terrell. "Computer Ethics: Basic Concepts and Historical Overview". In Zalta, Edward N. (ed.). Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. ISSN 1095-5054. OCLC 429049174.
Coleman, Kari Gwen. "Computing and Moral Responsibility". In Zalta, Edward N. (ed.). Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. ISSN 1095-5054. OCLC 429049174.