M2017 ITGS HL section B

One of the articles for network threats

Scenario: Many disabled people are making an income by streaming their video game experiences over the Internet and forming support communities among their fans. Social and ethical significance: Privacy and anonymity - If careless, some streamers may inadvertently reveal their identity on the internet, leaving them exposed to people with ill intentions who might wish to cause them harm. However, this issue can mostly be dealt with simply by being responsible and taking appropriate measures to protect one's privacy. Digital citizenship - Many people refuse to engage in polite and respectful discourse during their time spent on the internet, and it is not unexpected for streamers to be targeted with verbal abuse. Heavy moderation must be exerted to prevent cyberbulling, threats, and harassment to become pervasive. Globalization and cultural diversity - Services like this one allow people from all over the world to join together and learn about one another. Both the streamer and his/her viewers have an opportunity to meet people with whom they would otherwise never come into contact. IT systems: Video software, streaming software, networks, databases, online chat services, video game applications, etc. Applications to specified scenarios: This applies mostly to home and leisure, given that it is a system involving entertainment and social networking. However, it also applies to business by virtue of the commercial opportunities it offers, as well as education by serving as a potential pedagogic tool in the future. Stakeholders: Streamers, viewers, families of each (given the time investment made to create and/or follow Twitch channels), employees and executives of Twitch, other corporations that might wish to get involved, etc.

Scenario: Some companies are using people's photos that they have posted on social media sights as advertisements without their consent. Social and Ethical Significance: Privacy - With multitudes of social media sights, individual's privacy is being degraded Intellectual Property - Experts have said, "The person featured in a photo may own the publicity rights, which may give the individual control over the commercial use of his or her likeness" (Ember, Abrams). This goes to mean that companies must have consent from whoever is in the picture before using it in advertising. Policies - Companies like Crocs must have rules in place before exposing people who may not want to be featured in ads. Digital Citizenship - While companies do need to ask for permission to use others photos, people need to understand that by using social media sites, they are putting themselves out there. If they don't realize their privacy is at risk to being disregarded, they shouldn't be using the technology. Possible Solutions are to continue educating people on what can happen online and to create standard policies regarding the need for consent that all companies should follow. IT Systems: Networks Firewalls Servers Web Softwares Stakeholders: People are getting advertised without consent - Their privacy and rights to their pictures are being violated Companies who are using pictures of social media - Who may be blamed for loss of privacy, and gain bad publicity Social Media Sites - Who is the communication between companies trying to find pictures and the people who post pictures Applications to Specified Scenario: People's rights - In the world of technology, we are becoming less and less secure that we have rights to privacy. Everything we do on the Internet is tracked and we don't know who sees it. This article pinpointed how people can be found and unwillingly advertised. As technology continues to grow, more policies and regulations wil

This article discusses artificial intelligence, and the extent to which it is a) realistic and b) can be used as a replacement for humans in the case of chats -- in other words, it analyzes the question of how and when any such bots will be ready for usage in a manner that will be realistic enough for chatting with an actual human being. This development emerged due to the immediate need of firms such as customer service centers to use less work force and yet satisfy customers with solutions to trivial (to them) problems. The advantages for the stakeholders are immediately obvious -- less workforce will be needed because the computers will be in charge of answering most questions, and fewer questions will be eventually directed to an actual individual. However, the immediate ethical disadvantage is the loss of job openings in the area of customer service, along with many other areas, since intelligent machines will soon be the preferred alternative to complete such tasks; this provides the impacts concerning the economic and psychological aspects. Furthermore, through the loss of jobs, it is likely and very possible that legal issues may arise. The solutions to these problems is that the human workers work in tandem with each other; that way, both the machines are put to good use and the aspects involving the loss of jobs and the ethical/moral issues that arise with these points will be solved. Through the analysis of this article, it is immediately and readily obvious that the IT systems involved in this wide range of scenarios includes but is not limited to computers/computer servers, robotic mechanisms (e.g. robotic arms, etc.).

The new Windows 10 operating system is becoming the main focus for Microsoft. Microsoft's CEO, Satya Nadella hopes that Windows 10 will bring Microsoft back into being a major competitor for companies such as Apple and Samsung. The Windows 10 operating system connects all Windows devices to the cloud, including computers, phones, tablets and the Xbox. It also is going to allow Windows to create a large array of apps to be used across their devices. The new operating system is not only going to bring Windows back as a major competitor against the current reigning companies, but also connect Windows users like never before. All the new products will run on Windows 10, and the new apps will be the connective factor between consumers. The system also incorporates the cloud to connect users. Windows 10 is also increasing Windows' sales. They have already exceeded their predicted profit for the first quarter with this new OS. With Windows back as a competitor, this is going to cause more competition and innovation among the companies. Over 110 million people are already using Windows 10, so there is plenty of opportunity for Windows to interact and connect the users together. On a different note, users need to be wary when using new software, as the dangers with the new software are unknown. Those who are affected by the introduction of Windows 10 include Windows, Apple, Samsung and all technological consumers.

A British Telcom, TalkTalk, was hacked and demanded for ransom. 2 stakeholders: The company TalkTalk and subscribers to the company. The company was hacked for ransom and the data that was hacked were the personal information of the customers of TalkTalk. Issue #1: The hackers have gained very sensitive information such as credit card numbers and dates of birth. Negative: The hackers can use other people's money using the credit card information they received. They can also use the hacked information to do identity theft. Positive: There is no positive side to this. Issue #2: Some users and security experts criticized the company for going public about the hacking before knowing all the details. Positive: The company can use the criticism to help improve their company. Negative: The criticism can also reduce customers and statistics of their shares ratings.

Hi, Your post provides good insight to a negative side of the effects technology has on businesses. Both company owners, and customers must be aware of unfortunate possibilities like being hacked. I like how the two issues you addressed deals with both the technological side of things, hackers and what information can be leaked, and the business side, what the occurrence of this event means for the company itself.

Summary of the article: With technology, criminals and terrorists can use media to send threats, images and can even broadcast their crimes. 2 stakeholders: The criminals who use media and the viewers who end up watching their broadcasting. 2 social/ethical issues: With this technology, it is easier for terrorists to create a propaganda and they can easily spread fear by broadcasting their killings. For example, ISIS' videos include the killing of journalists, aid workers, government soldiers, etc. They would post this on the internet uncensored so anyone can watch everything that happened and may be unethical to certain cultures. We probably can't stop them from continuing to post these videos but there should be at least a program or a person who would censor the more gruesome parts. In the example of Mohamed Merah used in the beginning of the article, he used a Go Pro camera, his laptop and a USB drive to create a video documentary of his killings.

Technology has helped businesses in lots of ways in this case, Facebook launched a tool for nonprofits to raise money. The company is partnering with 37 organizations in order to try the new option, which enables users to set up pages where they can share videos, pictures and more about their organization. These features come with normal Facebook pages, so the special parts are where they can collect money towards a goal, and donations in general. People can now also donate on certain posts where the nonprofit puts a button to make donations easier. When this feature is enabled nonprofits and donors who support a cause(s) will change completely, especially since Facebook is a page where social movements and certain posts gain quite a lot of attention. Facebook currently has over a billion users, having this feature means that thousands of people will now be able to donate instantly, only needing to press a button to do so. Socially and ethically this feature is a big pro for Facebook and the world in general, when donating is this easy people will support more nonprofits, removing the hassle of going to different webpages or going in person donations will increase. People who are helped by these organizations are going to see more benefits since nonprofits can now raise money faster. Despite the fact that these are for social causes it also raises some concerns, Facebook is known to be a place where posts can cause social pressure on people. We have all seen the "Like and share this post if ________", it is very common, and a great way for pages to make themselves popular. A similar outcome could be placed when presented with these new features, and people might start saying "Donate to this post if you feel sorry for _____", making people succumb under social pressure, which might be even stronger if many of your friends and relatives donated. It is also important to note that fake pages might be setup and many people might donate money where it ends up in

Good analysis. It's crazy the amount of power social media sites like facebook has.

Situation: Technology is making businesses more optimised, efficient, and faster. Social and Ethical Significance: The ways that businesses work have changed over the past few years, is all due to the advancements in technology, that allow the companies/businesses/industries to work much quicker, efficient, and cover a much wider horizon, to achieve profits. The use of technology helps in allowing instant communication to any location around the globe, a more optimised mode of production of goods, services or a certain product, a much better, more efficient inventory management, allowing zero loose ends, and not to forget, better management of finances, anywhere at any time. IT systems: Well, IT systems in businesses vary from company to company. However, I'll take the example of a hypermarket chain, and name it X. X would have formal employees,as well as normal employees using personal laptops and smartphones, and that would require IT technicians to create working servers for the company. There would be a website portal for those who would like to order online, as well as customer calling services etc. Then, X would have checkout machines; some self-checkout and some, standard checkout, and these checkout machines would require regular maintenance to make sure it's in proper working condition. Then there would be barcode scanners all around the stores to check prices of a product in store. Application to Specified Scenarios: Supermarket and Hypermarket companies such as Asda, Carrefour, Spinneys, Choithram's, etc run using a similar system as described in the IT systems.

I agree that business and technology are accelerating the news industry a lot.

Situation: Ad blockers are becoming increasingly common, and as a result, businesses are rapidly losing revenue each year. Social and ethical significance: As is ubiquitous in the corporate world, businesses and consumers have differing needs and interests regarding their usage of the internet. Consumers want to avoid paying subscription fees and other charges for every single task they partake in on the web, while businesses still need to profit somehow. The response to this over the decades has largely been the rise of web advertisements, which come in many different forms. For a large portion of the internet's history, the vast majority of its users have grudgingly accepted the need for advertisements, seeing how they generally benefit consumers as well as businesses when it allows consumers to avoid paying extra. However, in recent years, ad blockers have become increasingly popular, which provide web users with the ability to hide every ad they see, which of course deprives the owners of the websites they browse from attaining the revenues they would otherwise receive. Naturally, this is a conundrum. Web activities need to be affordable for the average consumer, and businesses need to profit, which is the entire purpose of corporations in mixed economies. Solving this problem will force businesses to devise ways of making advertisements more palatable and less intrusive, and it may eventually result in an outright of ban of ad blockers. The latter possibility would nevertheless cause a huge uproar due to a perceived assault on freedom and individual liberties. It is therefore a solution which would be preferably avoided--ideally, the solution will simply make consumers less apt to even use an ad blocker in the first place without eliminating the presence of advertisements altogether. IT Systems: Advertisements in the forms of videos, pictures, animations, etc. as well as ad blockers in the form of browser extensions and software applications--including mobil

Situation: Robots are now being invented to aid in farming. This particular farm built a robot to prune and de-sucker grapes. Social and Ethical Significance: People and Machines - People being replaced by technology is a reality that we must face as it is a reality that we are beginning to see. Obviously when machines replace people, jobs are lost which is never a good thing. But that's not all we should be worrying about. When machines start to perform human tasks, we lose the skill and knowledge that comes with completing those tasks. So technology taking over tasks could either lead to depletion of common knowledge that humans have but it could also go be good because it will leave room for humans to focus on more important issues and knowledge, while machines take care of the mundane chores. IT Systems: GPS Gyroscope - Part of security. The robot knows when it has been lifted off the ground Artificial Intelligence - grape recognition Plant recognition Hard drive Synchronization of cameras Built in security - The robot won't start if it is an unknown area and can self-destruct Stakeholders: Farm Owners - The way their business is conducted could change Farm workers - They could lose jobs or have to learn new ones Robotic Engineers - They are interested in the new technology being used Applications to Specified Scenario: Changing how companies function is only one piece of what technology is changing. Technologies like this robot in the article could be applied to many different areas in the world. One example is security and surveillance. The robot in the article watches plants all day. It wouldn't be hard to alter the cameras to recognize people too. These robots also have tools that they are able to use. Wouldn't it then be possible to give the robots weapons and have them enforce the law? Or go to war? What would that mean for us humans? The upbringing of Artificial Intelligence will induce lots of change and raise various ethical considerati

A woman in California was using Wi-fi assist on her iPhone, and it caused her major data charges on her phone bill. Wi-fi assist is suppose to help connect the phone to Wi-fi hotspots when they come up, or change the connection if the current connection is low. This should ultimately lead to having a smaller phone data bill. However, that was not the case for this woman. She sued Apple because of the false advertising. Apple advertised this new feature, however it does not work the same as it is advertised. Instead of changing the Wi-fi when the connection is low, the phone switches to data usage without notifying the user. AppleInsider mentioned that Apple did not state the specific details of this feature. Because of this mistake, users could lose up to $5 million dollars. The mistake will not reach that many people, because many people today are on higher data rates anyway. It is unknown what happened with the legal matters of the Californian Woman.

IBM made a very wise comment regarding businesses in the age of technology, and how things are changing radically for all businesses, and in the long term, for all consumers as well. The IT system and issue at stake here is the future of businesses who choose to not adapt to new technologies, and transform their businesses in the world of technology in our day. Specifically, the article refers to "digital transformation," but does not touch upon an important topic we have discussed in ITGS, being the ethical implications involved in making such a transition. Beginning from the positive aspects of such a transformation, and specifically in the long term, these include: - more buyers - no data loss - better data management/analysis - improved business models through online systems - better quality marketing -- more effective So, in terms of these factors, one could say that such a "digital transformation" would definitely be worth the effort in the long term. However, ethical implications must also be considered, which include potential spreading of data to the wrong people, "filtering" the minds of consumers through online marketing, but also violating the consumer's privacy by noting down what they purchase each time and exchange a list of the consumer's interests to other businesses. In conclusion, we can see that such a digital transformation in terms of technology in relation to businesses can be both good and bad; this entirely depends on the effort that is put in the creation of this system, how well the system is maintained, and to what extent the system is targeted for attacking.

Hello! I liked how you incorporated that one of the biggest technology companies in the world has the same changes as some smaller companies; and the one thing that they have in common is the change of technology. I also think that your article choice was linked nicely to ITGS because it develops on the idea of Information technology changes throughout many societies.

An article relating to targeted advertising through the use of installed cameras within billboards. These tiny cameras gather details about passer-by - their gender, approximate age and how long they looked at the billboard. Social and ethical significance: 1)Privacy and anonymity - although Quividi claims that the process is completely anonymous, the details of the camera's recordings must be stored in a central database which, if not protected properly, could be susceptible to hackers and other perpetrators of crime. 2) Security - the safety of the data stored in the central database will be in danger if not properly protected. The data will most likely contain details of a person's identity. 3) Surveillance - the cameras must be connected to a network in order to to function to its full capacity. Once again, these cameras could be hacked into and used for surveillance purposes, which leads back to the issue of privacy and anonymity on the street. The general public, who are one of the stakeholders, are deeply involved in this matter as it is their identity that is being scrutinized by a small camera - in most cases the public are unaware that the billboard is identifying who they are and their presumed interests. The company, Quividi, is another stakeholder in this issue as they are responsible for this new technology. The advantages of this kind of "ultra-targeted advertising" is that companies can now know for sure what kind of advertisements to place and where, without the need of analysing the kinds of people that live in the particular area of interest etc; the camera installed in the billboards have the ability to do it themselves. Also, as the billboard is digital, there is no manpower involved in constantly changing the large billboard every other week or so. The main disadvantages to this is of course the invasion of privacy for the public but also the maintenance that would be required to keep the camera clean as well as updated

Apple says it is taking steps to remove a malicious software added to dozens of apps commonly used by owners of iPhones and iPads in China. Stakeholders: Apple and people who use Apple products in China. There was a malicious code on Apple products which affected the company and many people in China who use (among many others) the app WeChat: A very popular chatting app in Asia. Social/Ethical issues: When people start getting messages that makes them reveal their personal information, they would either believe it's important or be suspicious about it. If a friend "asks" for information and you reply to them, to have them later ask you why you told them that, then you are most likely being played and that would cause a lot of panic. I suppose a positive thing that could come from this is that people would be forced to close down the apps and actually talk face to face. This malware would also destroy Apple's reputation somewhat since they were so careless that the app store was infected. But this would have taught them to be more careful, which is a positive thing as it helps them improve. A solution for one negative impact - easily being played into giving out personal information - would be to make sure the person is real or the website or company is authentic. A list of IT systems: iOS Transaction Processing Systems Customer Relationship Management Systems Business Intelligence Systems Knowledge Management Systems [http://smallbusiness.chron.com/types-information-systems-organization-43097.html]

Great article choice! What social or ethical impact do you think that this might have towards the people? Other than the obvious impacts of destroying devices, what else could arise from such an issue? Also, how would developers of applications be affected by these issues?