Legal and Ethical Issues in computing Mid Exam Solution

Question No 01 : [06]Marks
a) What is the law of nature? Discuss why it is different from natural law?
Solution:
Natural law is the anchor of our rights of self-preservation, liberty, and property.
Before organized human societies, humans existed because of natural law. It
secured the environment in those human settlements for those activities that sustain
life, beginning with hunting and progressing through business and commerce. Even
today, there are human societies that exist without conventional law. Present-day
examples include those states with collapsed governments because of political
strife. People in these states, even in the absence of a central governing authority
and a functioning legal system, are still living their lives, many of them happily.
Although they may not enjoy all the pleasures of life, they have a way of
protecting life, liberty, and personal property. Ironically, there are even states that
supposedly live with organized authorities like government yet have no rule of
conventional law; they are surviving on natural law. The existence of natural law
has been debated for centuries. In fact, there are many who do not believe in
natural law and are always advocating the supremacy of conventional law. Thomas
Hobbes, the famous English philosopher, argued that the nature of man is not such
that one could deduce natural law from it, that the natural law so deduced does not
place any significant limits on the powers of civil law, and that social order is a
creation of state power.

b) Morality is time sensitive. Discuss.

Solution:
Although different cultures have different codes, and we have established that
morality is relative to time, there have been some timeless and culture-free (moral)
codes that have been nearly universally observed. Such codes include this partial
list created by the astronomer Carl Sagan :
1. The Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
Versions of the Golden Rule in Different Religions1
BUDDHIST: Hurt not others in ways that you would find hurtful.
CHRISTIAN: All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye
even so to them.
CONFUCIAN: Do not do unto others what you would not have them do unto you.
HINDU: This is the sum of duty; do naught unto others which if done to thee
would cause thee pain.
ISLAMIC: No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which
he desires for himself.
JAIN: In happiness and suffering, in joy and grief, we should regard all creatures
as we regard our own self.
JEWISH: Whatever thou hatest thyself, that do not to another.
SIKH: As thou deemest thyself, so deem others.
TAOIST: Regard your neighbor’s gain as your own gain, and your neighbor’s loss
as your own loss.
ZOROASTRIAN: That nature alone is good which refrains from doing unto
another whatsoever is not good for itself.
2. The Silver Rule: “Do not do unto others what you would not have them do unto
you.” Great men like Mahatma Gandhi followed this rule almost to the letter.
3. The Bronze Rule: “Repay kindness with kindness.” This rule is widely observed
because of its many varying interpretations. Some people “carrot-and-stick” rule.
However you interpret it, it seems to support the vendetta syndrome

Question No 02 [06]Marks
a) Discuss the importance of anonymity on the Internet.
Solution:
The nature of the Internet, with its lack of political, cultural, religious, and judicial
boundaries, has created a fertile ground for all faceless people to come out in the
open. In particular, the Internet provides two channels through which anonymous
acts can be carried out:
1. Anonymous servers: With advances in software and hardware, anonymity on the
Internet has grown through anonymous servers. There are two types of anonymity
servers:
(a) Full anonymity servers, where no identifying information is forwarded in
packet headers
(b) Pseudonymous servers, which put pseudonym in forwarded packet headers,
keeping the real identity behind a pseudonym, but being able to receive
and forward all packets sent to the pseudonym to the real server
Anonymity servers are able to accomplish this through the use of encryption. We
are not going to go further on the way this encryption is done.
2. Anonymous users: Another Internet channel to assure anonymity is for users to
assume pseudonyms and use internet services such as bulletin boards, chat
rooms and social online networks anonymously. Sensitive and sometimes highly
personal or classified information has been posted to popular user groups, news
groups, and online social networks chat rooms. Anonymity of postings is also
assured through the use of data transmission protocols such as Simple Mail
Transfer Protocol (SMTP) and Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP), which
accept messages to servers with arbitrary field information (1).

b) Is total anonymity possible? Is it useful?

Solution:

Those interested in illegal internet use aren’t the only people searching for a way to
be anonymous online. Internet privacy is a big deal. But can you ever truly be
anonymous on the dark web?

In short: no. You can’t be truly anonymous on the web, at least, not without wildly
sophisticated pieces of technology that are more in line with a hacker’s advanced
needs. That isn’t sensible or feasible for someone who simply doesn’t want their
personal information leaking out.

Anonymity tools, and a little common sense, can help prevent data from getting
into the wrong hands. So, where do you begin in your quest to be as anonymous as
you can? It starts with the information you share.

If you want to stay connected, you’ll have to get used to doing things a bit
differently. It will take plenty of patience and a bit of dedication, but if the end-
game is privacy, it’s well worth the effort

It’s easy to put all of your information out there, but if you don’t want the risks
involved in that, there are a few tips to keep in mind.

Create a new email address to use when registering on websites. Don’t use your
real details and avoid shopping online — otherwise your personal data and your
credit card number are out there, and they’ll be tied to your IP address on your
computer or smartphone.

Ditch the big name search giants. They all connect your IP address to personal data
about you. Instead, look to search engines that make privacy a first, like Duck
Duck Go. These companies don’t keep track of your searches, resulting in a
different kind of search experience.

Finally, consider using a password manager. Rather than keeping track of different
passwords, and potentially doing a horrible job of creating a password, password
managers do some of the hard work for you. They can let you know if your
existing passwords are weak and provide tips to get your passwords up to par. In
fact, they will even create random, strong passwords for you.
Question No 03 [06]Marks
1. List and discuss the major threats to individual privacy.

Solution:

1. Vulnerabilities in Web Applications

A single vulnerability is more than enough to cause a major data breach. That is
exactly what happened to Equifax; by exploiting a vulnerability that could feasibly
have been patched back in March, hackers were able to enter into the system just a
few months later in mid-May.

2. Insiders and Poorly-Trained Employees

Data exposure on the operator side is caused either intentionally by a malicious
insider or unintentionally by a simple mistake.

3. Lacking Breach Response

Even with the best security controls, incidents leading to leaks are still a
possibility. The point here is not making sure every incident is prevented, but
rather being prepared to provide a swift response to minimize the impact of
unforeseen situations.

4. Inadequate Personal Data Disposal

Personal data should be kept only as long as the relationship with the customer or
employee (and related legal obligations) are in effect. After that, it should be
securely disposed of; no excuses.

5. Lack of Transparency in Privacy Policies, Terms and Conditions

Per the GDPR, consent is a major requirement for collecting, storing or processing
personal data. In principle, in order to consent to something, it is first necessary to
be able to understand what you are consenting to.

6. Collection of Unnecessary Data

Collecting data should always be done with a specific purpose for which consent
has being received.

7. Personal Data Sharing

To put it simply, data is a currency, and it is quite common for companies to share
it with third parties for several reasons.
2. Identity theft is the fastest growing crime. Why?

Solution:

 Identity theft may be the nation's fastest-growing crime, but police department
funding shortages and turf battles have blocked it from becoming a top crime-
fighting priority, according to a new federal report.
"Because identity theft is still a 'nontraditional' crime, some police departments
may be unaware of the importance of taking reports of identity theft, much less
initiating investigations," according to a General Accounting Office report that was
undertaken at the request of Rep. Sam Johnson, R-Texas. Departments specializing
in such cases are frequently under funded, the report added, and since identity theft
cases tend to cross state and other jurisdictional lines, "law enforcement agencies
sometimes tend to view identity theft as being 'someone else's problem.'" Identity-
theft victims often have trouble taking the first step of filing a police report, the
study found. About 35 percent of victims who contacted the Federal Trade
Commission from November 1999 through October 2000 had tried and failed to
file a report with local police. In response, congressional and police groups
adopted a resolution in November 2000 calling for "all law enforcement
agencies ... to take more positive actions in recording all incidents of identity
thefts." The numbers improved in 2001; the FTC reported that 18 percent of the
identity-theft victims who contacted the agency last year had tried and failed to file
police reports. Still, anecdotal evidence indicate under funding and a lack of
awareness still stand in the way of making identity theft the top crime-fighting
priority lawmakers intended.
Identity theft occurs when someone steals another person's identifying information
-- such as a Social Security number or birth date -- and uses it to create a false
identity. The thief may use the false identity to get credit cards or take out loans,
then leave the victim stuck with the debt.
Question No 04 [07]Marks
Describe the concept and types of Infringement. (Detailed Discussion)

Solution:

This is an abstract concept, and the difficulty in understanding it illustrates the

elusiveness of the boundaries of these rights. There are three types of
infringements:
1. Direct infringement: The infringer knowingly or otherwise makes, uses, sells,
or
copies a protected item without any alteration.
2. Inducement infringement: The infringer intentionally supports infringement
activities on a protected item without individually taking part in the infringement
activities.

3. Contributory infringement: The infringer takes part in the infringement of a

protected item. Let us now look at infringement under each one of the subdomains
of the intellectual property domain.

Copyright Infringement
Copyright infringement is very difficult to prove. However, US courts have
provided guidelines that many courts normally follow [6] . Here are some of the
items
that courts look for in an infringement suit:
• Whether the infringer has knowledge or visual contact with the work
• Whether the individual claiming to be the owner has a valid copyright
• Whether the work under dispute is a major revision with substantially new
contents of the original or just a variation
Patent Infringement
Like copyright infringement, patent infringement is also difficult to detect.
Highly sophisticated methods of policing and investigative work need to be laid
down and followed. No public law enforcement can be used in these cases. It is
purely the efforts of the owner of the patents, and he or she must meet all
expenses incurred during the investigation and prosecuting of the infringer
if caught. Once the infringer is caught and determined guilty by the court, a
hefty settlement is collected from the perpetrator. There may also be punitive
damages

Trademark Infringement
To prove infringement of a trademark, one must prove beyond doubt that the infringer’s action
was likely to confuse the public. Because of this, it is very difficult to prove trademark
infringement.