Legal & Ethical Issues Associated with Modern Technologies

1. LEGAL & ETHICAL ISSUES ASSOCIATED
WITH MODERN TECHNOLOGIES
Nicole Waterford
AET 531
11-7-14
Stephanie Kreb

2. INTRODUCTION
When an organization takes on a new project like
implementing new technology there is more to
consider than just how to get the systems up and
running. The organization must also consider any legal
and ethical issues related to implementing new
technology to the organization. The organization must
consider legal issues like privacy, intellectual property,
copyright and fair use.

3. LEGAL AND ETHICAL ISSUES
 Privacy Act of 1974
 Consumer Privacy Act
 The Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA)
 Acceptable Use Policy

4. PRIVACY ACT OF 1974
 The Privacy Act of 1974, protects an individuals
personal identification information records such as
name, social security number, and any other
identifying number or information. The act also
provides individuals with the ability to request
modification of their individual records if necessary.
 The Privacy Act of 1974 excludes any disclosure of
an individuals personal information or records
without the written permission or approval of the
individual themselves (US Department of State
Freedom of Information Act, 2014)

5. CONSUMER PRIVACY ACT
 The Federal Trade Commission Act (FTC) requires all
financial institutions to protect a consumers
information.
 The act requires businesses to take responsibility
and become liable for protecting their client’s private
information from unidentified third par ties.
 The Federal Trade Commission will prosecute all
companies that fail to protect the privacy of their
clients from third par ties(US Federal Trade
Commission , 2014.

6. THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT
 The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) is a law that
provides the public with accessibility to U.S.
government records and information.
 The FOIA outlines mandatory disclosure of various
agency records and lists nine exemptions to the
statute that relate to issues of sensitivity and
personal rights listed in Title 5 of the US Code,
section 552(US Depar tment of Justice, 2014)

7. ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY
 The Acceptable Use pol icy is an organizational agreement
written by the organization requiring al l agreed upon par ties
who share the use of the organizations computers and
network to do so within the best interest of the organization.
 The Acceptable Use pol icy wi l l state rule of compl iance and
any penalties for misuse of the organizations computers or
network.
 The details of an organizations Acceptable Use pol icy wi l l be
to the discretion of the organization itsel f . The organization
wi l l generally state par ticular stipulation that users wi l l
adhere to such as:
 Use of internet
 Mail
 Spam

8. THE CHILDREN’S INTERNET PROTECTION ACT
 T h e C h i l dr en’ s I nte r net P rote c t io n Ac t wa s e nd o r s ed by
C o n g r e s s i n 2 0 0 0 wi t h t h e i n te n t to a d d r e s s c h i l dr e n ’ s a c c e s s
to obscene or harmful content found over the internet.
 The Act requires publ ic l ibraries, educational institutions, and
other companies that service chi ldren to adhere to par ticular
requirements of the Act.
 The Act requires the above institutions to instal l protective
sof tware to their computers preventing chi ldren from
accessing harmful content via the internet(The Federal
Communications Commission, 2014).

9. CONCLUSION
When an organization implements new technology it is
imperative that the organization factors in any legal and ethical
issues that the organization may face due to the
implementation of new technology. The organization wi l l need
to have pol icies and procedures set in place to deal with the
anticipated issues for the business health of the organization.

10. REFERENCES
 The Federal Communications Commission. (2014, 11 7) .
About: The Federal Communications Commission . Retrieved
from The Federal Communications Commission :
http://www.fcc.gov/guides/childrens- internet -protection-act
 US Depar tment of Justice. (2014, 11 7) . Home: Freedom Of
Information Act. Retrieved from Freedom Of Information Act:
http://www.foia.gov/
 US Depar tment of State Freedom of Information Act. (2014,
11 7) . About: US Depar tment of State Freedom Of Information
Act . Retrieved from US Depar tment of State Freedom Of
Information Act : http://foia.state.gov/Learn/PrivacyAct.aspx
 US Federal Trade Commission . (2014, 11 7) . About: US
Federal Trade Commission . Retrieved from US Federal Trade
Commission : http://www.f tc.gov/about-f tc