ETHICAL, MORAL AND CULTURAL ISSUES

• What are the moral, social, ethical, and cultural opportunities and risks of digital technology mentioned in the specification?

  Computers in the workforce, automated decision making, artificial intelligence, environmental effects, censorship and the Internet, monitor behaviour, analyse personal information, piracy and offensive communications, layout, colour paradigms, and character sets.
• What are the implications of ethics and morals in the context of digital technology?

  • Concerned with community values
  • Impact of decisions on different groups
  • Importance of considering moral, ethical, environmental, social, and cultural implications
  • Identifying issues is the first step to resolving them
• How do computers improve efficiency in the workforce?

  They reduce delivery times and speed up manufacturing processes.
• What is a major downside of computerization in the workforce?

  It has contributed to high levels of structural unemployment.
• What shift has occurred in job types due to computerization?

  There has been a shift towards low-income service jobs.
• What are some examples of services offered exclusively online?

  Online shopping and online banking services.
• What is a major risk associated with a highly computerized workplace?

  There is a high dependence on computers, leading to major loss of output if something goes wrong.
• What has increased the demand for computing-related occupations?

  The essential role of computers in the workplace.
• What is automated decision making used for in social media?

  To determine what users should be displayed on their social media feeds.
• What is a potential danger of reinforcing people's interests through automated decision making?

  It creates a dangerous bubble where beliefs are never challenged.
• How can algorithmic decision-making affect people's lives?

  It can determine a person's suitability for mortgages, loans, and jobs.
• What ethical question arises from algorithmic decision-making in driverless cars?

  How to decide who should be harmed in a scenario where either a pedestrian or the driver must be harmed.
• What is the role of algorithms in power distribution systems?

  They collect and analyze inputs to respond instantly to changes in power demand.
• What is artificial intelligence (AI)?

  The ability of a computer to replicate human intelligence.
• How is AI used in medicine?

  It is used in expert systems to draw connections between illnesses to form diagnoses.
• What are expert systems also known as?

  Knowledge-based systems.
• What do neural networks do?

  They learn from a set of data and can apply this knowledge to new data sets.
• What concerns arise from the use of voice recognition systems in smart home technology?

  They raise concerns about privacy.
• What ethical questions does AI raise regarding accountability?

  Who is responsible when things go wrong, and what rights should sentient AI have?
• What environmental issues arise from the production of technological devices?

  Increased e-waste and the use of non-renewable fossil fuels.
• What is e-waste?

  Electronic waste that is often disposed of improperly.
• How do environmentally-friendly technologies help offset environmental effects?

  They use sensors to optimize energy use, such as smart home systems.
• What is censorship?

  The act of suppressing the content that people can view, publish, and access.
• Why do some countries use censorship?

  To block out other political opinions.
• What is a concern regarding censorship in the UK?

  It may be misused to push a certain ideology, which some consider unethical.
• What is the general belief about the necessity of some censorship?

  Some extent of censorship is necessary for national security and to filter offensive comments.
• How is behaviour monitored in workplaces?

  Employers track the websites and applications workers are accessing and the time spent on these.
• What is the purpose of surveillance systems like CCTV?

  To provide security and detect crime.
• What ethical debate surrounds the use of ankle monitors?

  Whether they contravene basic human rights or are necessary to deter crime.
• What is big data?

  Large amounts of data from various sources that can be analyzed for insights.
• What ethical concerns arise from data mining personal information?


  Whether companies have a responsibility to inform individuals about trends that affect them.
• What legislation was developed in 1998 to protect personal data?

  The Data Protection Act.
• What is the GDPR and when was it enforced?

  The General Data Protection Regulation enforced in May 2018.
• What is piracy in the context of digital content?

  The unauthorized copying of content, such as software or media.
• What does offensive communication refer to?

  Any sort of online harassment, including cyber-bullying or stalking.
• What legislation makes it a criminal offence to send indecent or offensive messages online?

  The Malicious Communications Act introduced in 1998.
• What considerations should web developers keep in mind when designing websites?

  • Who will be viewing the website
  • Compliance with the Equality Act (2010)
  • Easy navigation between pages
  • Accessibility for people with visual impairments
  • Alternative text for images
  • Transcripts for audio files
• What factors should web developers consider when choosing a colour scheme?

  • Interpretation of colours in different cultures
  • Avoiding colours regarded as unlucky
• What is the preferred character set for web content and why?

  • Unicode is preferred
  • It can represent over a million characters