Princess Nora Bint AbdulRahman University
College of Computer and Information Sciences
Computer Science Department
Professional Ethics
Assignment 2
Due Date: Thursday 3rd of April
1. Evaluate the following scenarios based on the four workable theories: Kantianism Act Utilitarianism Rule Utilitarianism Social Contract Theory.
a. A company uses a pop-up advertising to market its software product, which blocks pop-ups from appearing when someone is surfing the web.
Kantianism: First formulation: If we universalize this action, every company will advertise its products that will stop the method the company used which is a bad action.
Second formulation: the company used the advertisement as a means of their end, which is a bad action.
Act Utilitarianism: The benefits exceeds the harms so it is a good action.
Rule Utilitarianism: The happiness of the people will be reached if the company did what has done, the company did not do wrong.
Social Contract Theory: If there is a rule that says it is not acceptable to advertise on blocking advertisements then the company did a wrong action. If there is no rule saying that then the company did not do wrong.
b. Ad-blocking software attachments to web browsers enable a web surfer to visit web sites without having to view the pop-up advertisements associated with these web pages. People who use ad-blocking software are violating an implicit social contract with companies that use-advertising revenues as a means of providing free access to web pages.
Kantianism: First Formulation: if we universalize the situation that is everyone would use ad blocking it will do no harm
Second Formulation: the people used the ad blocking as a means to an end, which is wrong.
Act Utilitarianism: the benefits exceeds the harms so it is a good action.
Rule Utilitarianism: the happiness of the companies who promotes their products using ads will not be reached so it is a wrong action to be blocked.
Social Contract Theory: since there is a contract that protects the right to advertise to companies, it is a wrong action to use ad-blocking software.
c. In 2000, the Estonian parliament passed a law declaring internet access to be a fundamental human right of its citizens. Should Internet access should be a fundamental human right, along with the other fundamental human rights.
Kantianism: First and second formulation would agree with the right to the internet access, so the parliament did the right thing.
Act Utilitarianism: benefits of having the people to access the internet exceeds the harms, so the parliament did the right thing.
Rule Utilitarianism: this rule will achieve the happiness of people, the parliament did nothing wrong.
Social Contract Theory: if there is no contract that prevents the right to internet access then the parliament did nothing wrong.
d. Martine dula has suggested that parents should not provide their children with phones capable of taking photos and videos because these phones tempt children to participate in inappropriate actions.
Kantianism: First formulation: if we universalize that all children would not have phones then there is no harm, the act is acceptable.
Second formulation: Martine did not suggest the rule as an end of himself so the action is not wrong.
Act Utilitarianism: the benefits of the children not having phones will exceed the harms so the action is right.
Rule Utilitarianism: the happiness will be reached when the children have no phones so the action is right.
Social Contract Theory: there is no contract that prevents people from suggesting some rules and applying it, so he did nothing wrong.
2. How do you determine the credibility of information you get from the web? Does the source of information make any difference to you? If so, how would you rank the reliability of each of the following sources of web pages? Does the type of information you are seeking affect your ranking?
Establishment newspaper.
Counterculture newspaper.
Television network.
Corporation.
Nonprofit organization.
Individual.
Every Student has its own opinion.
