PRIVACY AND SOCIAL MEDIA: Possible Breach of Ethics

 SONNY P. DIZA, MBA

DIVINE WORD COLLEGE OF LAOAG

When using social media, one should consider basic human rights, personal rights, privacy rights, and the treatment of personal information, etc. while also obeying all relevant laws and regulations as well as the Code of Conduct.

-Sumitomo Rubber Group, Social Media Policy (#129, Financial Times Global 500, 2013

(The content of the paper belongs to the author)

Abstract

Social media use is pervasive across all age groups, social classes, and cultural divides. Social media usage has increased dramatically in recent years. Social media platforms are increasingly used as vital hubs for networking, socializing, and, most significantly, reflecting on many facets of everyday life. As a result, these online venues include enormous amounts of organically occurring data on a range of subjects, including consumer behaviour, attitudes toward pro-environmental measures, and political preferences and perspectives. Nevertheless, the rising usage of digital media is accompanied by ethical and privacy concerns. These privacy concerns may have significant effects on one's professional, personal, and security life. Due to the nature of social media, which is to share information, achieving total privacy is exceedingly challenging. Individuals who use social media must be willing to disregard some personal and privacy restrictions, making them somewhat vulnerable. Weak privacy protections for people in this area have led to unethical and undesired actions that have led to privacy and security breaches, particularly for the foremost vulnerable users.

The ethical issues surrounding a person's right to privacy when they are endangered by technology will be covered in this article. In addition, it also discusses how unethical use of social media can impact users’ privacy, particularly in business ethics.

Keywords: ethics, privacy violation, social media

Introduction

According to Britz, the so-called information age, in which economic activity is mostly information-based, is the era in which we currently live (an age of informationalization). This is a result of technological advancement and application. The main characteristics of this period can be summed up as an increase in knowledge workers, a more open world in terms of communication (the global village/Gutenberg galaxy), and internationalization (trans-border flow of data). The twenty-first century could be referred to as the "boom" time for social networking as the use of social media is expanding quickly. Communication at home and work has undergone a substantial transformation because of social media. Additionally, social media platforms offer a lot of potential for businesses in terms of recruiting, organizational learning, public relations, and internal and external communications. As of February 2019, according to reports from Smart Insights, over 3.484 billion people were using social media. According to the Smart Insight survey, social media users are increasing by 9% yearly, and it is predicted that this growth will continue. Social media users currently make up 45% of the world's population. The "Millennial Generation," or those who became adults at the turn of the twenty-first century, and "Digital Natives," a group of people who were either born or who have grown up in the digital era and are familiar with the various technologies and systems, are the most active users of social media. These user groups use social media platforms for a wide range of activities, including marketing, news gathering, education, healthcare, civic involvement, and political activity. (Chaffey, 2019)

What is Privacy?

            According to dictionary.com, the definition of privacy is the right to enjoy freedom from unauthorized intrusion is the negative right of all human beings. Privacy is defined as the right to be left alone, to be free from secret surveillance, or unwanted disclosure of personal data or information by government, corporation, or individual. (Barrett-Maitland, N., & Lynch, J.,2020) Privacy is the ability to control information about oneself as well as the freedom from surveillance from being followed, tracked, watched, and eavesdropped on. In this regard, ignoring privacy rights often leads to encroachment on natural rights. (Baase, 2012: Barrett-Maitland, N., & Lynch, J.,2020)  

            Peace of mind and solitude can be attained through privacy or even just the awareness that one has this right. People can breathe easily in this quiet since it is free from interruptions and intrusions. According to Richards and Solove (2010) cited by Barrett-Maitland, N., & Lynch, J.(2020), Legal scholar William Prosser argued that privacy cases can be classified into four related “torts,” namely:

Intrusion—this can be viewed as encroachment (physical or otherwise) on one's liberties/solitude in a highly offensive way.

Privacy facts—making public, private information about someone that is of no “legitimate concern” to anyone.

False light—making public false and “highly offensive” information about others.

Appropriation—stealing someone’s identity (name, likeness) to gain advantage without the permission of the individual.

As technology permeates every aspect of daily life, information privacy is becoming increasingly difficult to protect as more and more data is gathered, transported, and analyzed for both good and bad purposes. As technology attempts to blur the barrier between the private and public spheres, it becomes more of a sensitive subject. Even established businesses in the field are struggling to keep clients' personal information secure. As a result, privacy has evolved into the most complex consumer protection issue in the digital age, even though it is fundamentally a human right. (Grover, 2015).

The breach of informational privacy can impact solitude (the right to be left alone), intimacy (the right not to be monitored), and anonymity (the right to have no public personal identity and by extension physical privacy impacted). The right to control access to facts or personal information in our view is a natural, inalienable right and everyone should have control over who sees their personal information and how it is disseminated. (Barrett-Maitland, N., & Lynch, J., 2020).     

It might be argued that privacy establishes the boundaries for participation and disengagement and is a culturally universal requirement for healthy connections between people. Because it is necessary for the growth of specific types of human connections, intimacy, and trust, privacy can also be seen as an instrumental good.  However, due to ongoing monitoring and the inability to gauge how much engagement there is with multiple publics, achieving privacy is much more challenging. (Johnson DG, 2004: Barrett-Maitland, N., & Lynch, J., 2020). According to Baase (2012), some detractors contend that privacy is a universal right and that it offers a defense against antisocial acts including deceit, misinformation, and fraud.

Because it is a prerequisite for other rights like freedom and individual autonomy, privacy is a crucial right. Thus, there is a connection between personal freedom, privacy, and human dignity. Respecting someone's privacy is the same as recognizing their right to freedom and their status as independent human beings.

It is also a basic obligation to respect someone's privacy. To put it another way, it is not a requirement that cannot be waived. There are two possible examples. First off, the police have the right to invade a criminal's privacy by eavesdropping on them or taking their personal belongings (McGarry, 1993). To maintain law and order in society, a government is also permitted to collect sensitive information from its inhabitants (Ware, 1993). Social responsibility thus limits the right to privacy (as a manifestation of human freedom).

Privacy is neither secrecy nor security

According to Grover (2015), Privacy is defined as that that can be kept private and is permitted by society, whereas secrecy is anything that is not permitted to be kept private yet is being done so by someone. Privacy is essential for reputation, whereas secrecy hurts it. Although privacy is not security, it is quite near to it because privacy is jeopardized when it is violated. Security places a greater emphasis on defending data against hostile assaults and the commercial use of stolen data, as is done by some businesses with a concentration on technology. When we say security is required for data protection, we don't mean it's enough to handle privacy. 

Social Media

Employee usage of boundary-crossing technologies in the office for personal purposes is common, whether it means utilizing corporate computers to check personal e-mail and social network accounts or sending text messages on employer-provided communications devices (Abril et.al., 2012). According to Boulianne (2015), social media has become one of the most widely used Internet services worldwide due to the exponential rise of its usage over the past ten years, offering new opportunities to "see and be seen." Social media use has altered the nature of communication, which has affected moral standards and behaviour. The extraordinary rate of user growth has led to changes in areas such as civic and political engagement, privacy, and safety, as well as a decrease in the use of other media. (McCay-Peet, L., & Quan-Haase, A. ,2017).

The use of social media is a developing phenomenon in modern culture. Social media sites give users a simple way to connect with and grow their networks of friends, family, and relevant professionals. Almost anyone's interests can be accommodated by online communities of interest. Social media platforms are being used more and more often by people as a means of communication, information exchange, and - most crucially for this text - the sharing of attitudes and behaviors on a vast array of issues. Online services that let users build "public, semi-public," or both types of profiles can be referred to as social media sites. Users have the option of creating individual profiles and/or joining a group of individuals they may know offline. They also offer ways to establish online relationships. People have access to information about their contacts through these virtual friendships, including background knowledge, interests, and location. Different tools are available on social networking sites to help in communication. Chat rooms, blogs, private messages, public comments, methods for posting content from outside the website, and sharing of films and photos are some of these. As a result, social media has fundamentally altered how individuals interact with one another and build connections. (Gil de Zúñiga, H., Jung, N., & Valenzuela, S., 2012).  

Social media and Privacy

            Social media and the information/digital era have “redefined” privacy. Although technology has a significant impact on information gathering, storage, retrieval, and distribution, its principal ethical implications pertain to accessibility (or lack thereof) and information manipulation. It makes it possible for more people to receive information simultaneously and more widely. Inferentially, more people will find it simpler to access a person's private information. However, a person can be prevented from accessing essential information in electronic form using several security precautions, like passwords.

            Christians (1991) describes technology use as a process that is loaded with values. Even according to Kluge (1994), technology has altered the ethical implications of a document's ontological character. He especially alludes to the technological manipulation of information when he uses this phrase. On the other hand, Brown (1990) rightly argues that we do not need to "rethink our moral principles" as a result of the ethical issues brought on by the use of technology.

            Because sharing information is the main means of engaging in social communities on social networking sites (SNSs), individuals' ability to maintain their privacy is highly dependent on these networks. Users of these platforms are responsible for guarding their information against third-party data collection and managing their accounts, making SNS privacy "multifaceted." However, users of SNSs seem to be more willing to divulge personal and private information than users of other websites. This can be related to the overall sense of belonging, comfort, and family that various mediums convey. Designers of social networking sites do not prioritize privacy measures, and few young adolescent users alter the default privacy settings of their accounts. (Barrett-Maitland, N., Barclay, C., & Osei-Bryson, K. M., 2016).

The impact of the use of technology on the privacy of people manifests itself in a variety of areas. These areas include, inter alia the following:

a. The electronic monitoring of people in the workplace. This relates to personal information, and this is done by so-called electronic eyes. The justification by companies for the use of such technology is to increase productivity. However, Stair (1992) makes it apparent that there is an ethical issue with the employment of these technologies when discussing this practice. According to him, these devices pose a threat to people's privacy at work. Additionally, it can cause a sense of dread and of constantly being watched or the "panopticon phenomenon."

b. The interception and reading of E-mail messages. This raises an ethical issue about an individual's private conversation. Technically speaking, it is possible to intercept email messages, and companies typically justify reading them because they view the technology infrastructure (email) as a resource belonging to the company rather than the individual. Additionally, messages are intercepted to check on people to see whether they use the facility for personal reasons or to perform their jobs.

c. Another major threat to privacy is the rise of so-called hackers and crackers who break into computer systems (Benjamin, 1991). This coincides with the shift in ethical values and the emergence of the cyberpunk culture with the motto of "information wants to be free".

Social Media and Ethics

            The word "ethics" is derived from the Greek word ethos (character), and the Latin word 'mores' (customs). Derived from the Greek word "ethos," which means "way of living", ethics is a branch of philosophy that is concerned with human conduct. It consists of a code of conduct for human beings living in a society. Ethics examines the rational justification for our moral judgments; it studies what is morally right or wrong, just or unjust. Together, they combine to define how individuals choose to interact with one another. In philosophy, ethics defines what is good for the individual and society and establishes the nature of duties that people owe to themselves and one another. It aims at individual good as well as a social good, the good of mankind as a whole (http://www.kkhsou.in/main/philosophy/nature_ethics.html#:~:text=The%20scope%20of%20ethics%20indicates,or%20wrongness%20of%20human%20actions

            It is also defined as the science of the highest good. Mackenzie (1901) defines ethics as "the study of what is right or good in human conduct" or the "science of the ideal involved in human life". So, ethics is the study that determines the rightness or wrongness of actions.

            According to Nate (2018), in the domain of social media, some of the ethical questions that must be contemplated and ultimately answered are:

a.       Can this post be regarded as oversharing?

b.      Has the information in this post been distorted in any way?

c.       What impact will this post have on others?

One of the largest age groups using social media is those between the ages of 8 and 15. These young people, who range in age from 8 to 15, are still learning how to connect with those around them and determining the moral principles they will uphold. Their interactions with the world around them will be influenced by these moral principles. The moral principles that serve as the foundation for our ethical ideals were typically imparted to us by a person or group of people, such as our parents, guardians, religious organizations, or instructors, to mention a few. Many members of Generation Y, or "Digital Babies," are "newbies," but they still need to decide for themselves how much responsibility to exhibit when utilizing the various social media platforms. This involves taking into account how a post will affect their own and/or other people's lives. They must also be aware that when they sign up for a social media network, they are becoming a member of a community where specific conduct is expected. They cannot be expected to have that level of maturity at that age, which is necessary for such responsibility. (Barrett-Maitland, N., & Lynch, J.,2020)

Applicable Ethical Norms

Applicable ethical norms which can act as guidelines, as well as instruments of measurement, must be formulated to address these ethical issues. The following norms can be distinguished: truth, freedom, and human rights. ( Britz, J.J., n.d)

Truth. Truth as an ethical norm has a dual ethical application. Firstly, it serves as a norm for the factual correctness of the information. As a norm, it thus guides the information professional regarding the accurate and factually correct handling of private information. In the second-place truth is an expression of ethical virtues such as openness, honesty, and trustworthiness.         

Freedom. According to this norm, a person has the freedom to make choices in terms of freedom of privacy and freedom from intrusion. As a norm, however, it may not become absolutized. Therefore, the choice of privacy from intrusion may not restrict the freedom of others.

Human rights. This norm is closely related to freedom but can be regarded as a more concretely applicable norm. Applied to privacy it means the juridical acknowledgement and protection of a person's right to privacy. As an individual human right, it also protects the individual from unlawful interference from society (amongst others the state) in the private life of an individual.

Conclusion

In the information age of today, one's digital imprint can make or break them and determine whether or not they fulfil their life's goals. Social media contacts and unethical behaviour can have significant effects on a person's career and social life. Internet posting signals the "end of forgetting," thus it's crucial to use it responsibly. The irresponsible use of social media has ramifications for privacy and may lead to real-world and virtual security breaches. Social media use can also lead to a loss of privacy because many users are forced to share information that they otherwise would not. If users don't properly control their usage of social media, it can divulge information that could lead to privacy violations. Therefore, it is crucial to remind users of the risks and consequences of disclosing sensitive information in this setting and to promote caution in guarding users' privacy on these platforms. This might lessen the use of these platforms for immoral and reckless purposes and promote safer social interactions. Social media usage ought to be guided by universally applicable moral and ethical standards that foster healthy connections among people of different racial, cultural, religious, and socioeconomic backgrounds.

The processing of information via technology raises significant issues with an individual's right to privacy. The rights to freedom and human autonomy are closely related to this one. These issues mostly concern the availability of information and its manipulation. This is especially important for information professionals who work with sensitive personal data. The standards of liberty, truth, and human rights can be used to provide actionable rules for dealing with these issues.

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