This document discusses legal and ethical issues surrounding technology, including intellectual property, privacy, and relevant laws. It addresses questions around who owns ideas, the role of law, and how privacy should be handled. Key points made include that intellectual property is anything created by the intellect that is legally protected from unauthorized use, and that copyright law protects original works but exceptions exist like fair use. Privacy laws aim to protect individuals, particularly children, but can also be misused, so determining who needs protection guides policy. Copyright, fair use, the Children's Internet Protection Act, and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act are discussed as examples of laws around these issues.

1. KIMBERLY EDWARDS
UNIVERSITY OF PHOENIX
AET 531
JUNE 23, 2014
Legal and Ethical Issues of
Technology

2. Issues
 Who owns an idea (intellectual property?)
 Who has the right to use it and why?
 What role does the law play?
 How should privacy be handled?
 Who needs protected and why?

3. Importance
 Intellectual property is “Any product of the intellect that the law
protects from unauthorized use” (Cornell, 2014). This could be a
movies, an invention, a song, and many other things** Learn
more here.
 Important because the law determines what intellectual
property is and how it I used.
 Laws guide how works can be used. Knowing the law lets us
know how we can use or reference a work and determines
ownership.
 Privacy protects users, but can also be used to cause harm (read
more about privacy and anonymity policies here).
 Deciding who needs protected guides laws and policies, and
helps user safety.

4. Laws
 Copyright Law
 Protects “original ideas” (Copyright Office, 2012), but this protection is
limited.
 Protections can decrease over time, and some things are not protected.
For example, works that do not contain original content.
 Learn about the basics of copyright law
 Fair Use
 An exception to copyright protections. Fair use is the copy of a work for a
“transformative purpose”(Stanford, 2014), such as analysis, review, and
parody. Here are some examples.
 CIPA
 Protects children from harmful content by requiring organizations to
limit access to some content. Read the FCC’s CIPA guide here.
 FERPA
 Protect the privacy of student by giving parents some control over
how records are used or shared. See the Department of Education’s
full description here.

5. Examples of Laws
 Privacy Issues:
 What should children be protected from? Who decides? (CIPA)
 Who controls personal information? What information is important?
(FERPA)
 Copyright protected works:
 Plays, books, paintings, movies, maps, songs, a test, architecture, and
even dances.
 Exceptions:
 Works “not fixed” such as book ideas never written.
 Information that is “common property, such as public documents
like the Constitution.
 Fair use examples:
 Analysis: quoting part of a book to help describe it.
 Mockery: “Scary Movie”.

6. References and Sources
Cornell University (2014). Intellectual Property. Retrieved from
http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/intellectual_property
United States Copyright Office (2012). Copyright Basics. Retrieved from
http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ101.pdf
Stanford University Library. (2014). What is Fair Use? Retrieved from
www.fairuse.stanford.edu/overview/fair-use/what-is-fair-use/
FCC. (2014). Children’s Internet Protection Act. Retrieved from http://www.fcc.gov/guides/childrens-
internet-protection-act
U.S. Department of Education. (2014). Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. Retrieved from
www.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/index.html
NTIA. (n.d.). Technology and Privacy Policy. Retrieved from www.ntia.doc.gov/page/chapter-5-
technology-and-privacy-policy