How should the ethical problems presented by Computer Technology, Information Technology, Information Networks and the Internet be approached?
Like any ethical questions, ethical issues in computer technology and IT must be approached from a rational and questioning beginning. Knowledge of the technology itself: We must realize from the outset that we are at the beginning of the technology and we simply dont yet know that what computers will be capable of doing in the future. That being said, the only place to start in discussing ethical issues is from where we now stand. Deborah Johnson in Computer Ethics (p.7) labels this a traditionalist account but from where else would we begin? There is a long history of thought and reasoning on well-known ethical issues, and a large variety of approaches to solving new ethical problems. These are already well established. In some ways, ethical issues involving computers are the same or related to these previously discussed issues. We have established moral values on such matters as stealing, privacy, ownership and responsibility. We can and should use these values as a guide in looking
