Computer EthicsChristina McCorkle

Ethics Ethics: A set of

principles of right conduct

Business Ethics: Moral and social responsibility in relation to business practices and decision-making in business.

10 Commandments of Computer Ethics

1. Thou shall not use a computer to harm other people.

2. Thou shall not interfere with other peoples computer work.

3. Thou shall not snoop around in other peoples files.

4. Thou shall not use a computer to steal.5. Thou shall not use a computer to bear

false witness.6. Thou shall not use or copy software for

which you have not paid.

7. Thou shall not use other peoples computer resources without authorization.

8. Thou shall not appropriate other peoples intellectual output.

9. Thou shall think about the social consequences of the program you write.

10. Thou shall use a computer in ways that show consideration and respect.

What is Copyright?

Copyright is a form of protection provided by the laws of the United States (title 17) to the authors of “original works of authorship,” including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works. This protection is available to both published and unpublished works.

1976 Copyright Act The 1976 Copyright Act

generally gives the owner of copyright the exclusive right to do and to authorize others to do the following:

To reproduce the work in copies or phonorecords

To prepare plagiaristic works based upon the work;

To distribute copies or phonorecords of the work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending;

To perform the work publicly, in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audiovisual works;

To display the work publicly, in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, etc.

In the case of sound recordings, to perform the work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission.

Section 501

Anyone who violates any of the exclusive rights of the copyright owner as provided by sections 106 through 122 or of the author as provided in section 106A, or who imports copies or phonorecords into the United States in violation of section 602, is an infringer of the copyright or right of the author, as the case may be.

Generally, under the law, one who engages in any of these activities without obtaining the copyright owner's permission may be liable for infringement.

How do you Get permission to use someone else's work? If you know who the

copyright owner is, you may contact the owner directly. If you are not certain about the ownership or have other related questions, you may wish to request that the Copyright Office conduct a search of its records or you may search yourself.

How much of someone’s copyrighted material can be used? Under the fair use

doctrine of the U.S. copyright statute, it is permissible to use limited portions of a work including quotes, for purposes such as commentary, criticism, news reporting, and scholarly reports. There are no legal rules permitting the use of a specific number of words, a certain number of musical notes, or percentage of a work.

Two laws dealing with how much material can be copied are: FL 102 and Circular 21, Reproductions of Copyrighted Works by Educators and Librarians.

Penalty for Downloading protected material. Uploading or

downloading works protected by copyright without the authority of the copyright owner is an infringement of the copyright owner's exclusive rights of reproduction and/or distribution

Anyone found to have infringed a copyrighted work may be liable for statutory damages up to $30,000 for each work infringed and, if willful infringement is proven by the copyright owner, that amount may be increased up to $150,000 for each work infringed.

Avoid violating the law… Since the files

distributed over peer-to-peer networks are primarily copyrighted works, there is a risk of liability for downloading material from these networks. To avoid these risks, there are currently many "authorized" services on the Internet that allow consumers to purchase copyrighted works.

By purchasing works through authorized services, consumers can avoid the risks of infringement liability and can limit their exposure to other potential risks, e.g., viruses, unexpected material, or spyware.