CST 373 Week 7 Scrapbook

CST Week 7 Scrapbook

The Ethics of Algorithms, or Why Coders Need an Ethics Code

Link: https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3725995,00.html
PDF: https://drive.google.com/a/csumb.edu/file/d/1mbemNfP8k9QW1Mz_rM4ClWYw1-903vTE/view?usp=sharing

Additional reading regarding China's new credit system: http://www.wired.co.uk/article/chinese-government-social-credit-score-privacy-invasion

Article Summary:

This article argues that boundaries in ethics must be established to limit the amount of big data that algorithms are allowed to collect. The article explains how we are subjected to many algorithms a day in order for organizations to learn more about us. It goes on to say,

"Today we already understand that we are being cataloged, analyzed, ranked, grouped and graded not just by the servers of those who would sell us something. Security and law enforcement agencies invade our lives unhindered in order to decide whether we pose a threat; politicians study us for the next election; banks determine how likely we are to return our loans; insurance companies rate our health and our life expectancy."

 It then goes on to say that China is piloting a new Social Credit System that incorporates many aspects of data about a person, ie. what they buy, where they live, and who are their friends, in order to determine that individual's credit score. The author argues that we must limit the amount of big data that is collected by organizations in order to avoid a path where everything we do is scrutinized and ranked by other entities particularly government as is seen in China. I have included a link detailing China's new credit system.

Why it was Chosen:

This article was chosen because, I feel that we as developers are at a point where we can stop the growing trend in big data collection. I personally do not want to live in a world where my every action is examined and scrutinized. I believe we all have a right to personal privacy and the trend is that more and more big companies and governments are beginning to learn about all aspects of those who use their product or are within their jurisdiction.

Ethical Implications:

Although the corporations make the decisions to create such algorithms, developers hold the power to embrace an ideal and refuse to work towards a potential world where people's privacy becomes non-existent. I believe knowledge is power and the more knowledge a government or organization has over the people under it, the more control it has over them.What China is incorporating in their new credit system is scary. By incorporating behaviors into their credit system, they can more easily mold a society to think and act how they want them to act. The majority of people would want their "score" to be as high as possible and thus force a trend in personal spending or actions in the way the government wants them to spend. As mentioned above, the ethical implication of exploitation of personal privacy come into play.

Credibility of Source:

CTech is a fairly new technology news site established just in the year 2017. Being a new organization more research into the validity of China's new big data credit system was done. It was discovered through wired.uk.co that this is in fact true. Wired is a reputable tech magazine that has been around since 1993.