Keagan Plummer

In a world continually concerned with advancing technology, it becomes more pertinent to

consider the ethical ramifications of our work. Ethics are, in part, up to the interpretation of the creator
and their beliefs. For example, when I must make an ethical decision, I try to think about how the
decision will affect others. Then, I will weigh the options. If I feel the decision I make will accomplish
more than it will hurt others, then I will usually go through with the decision. The problem arises with
how the options are weighed. The process will differ from person to person. So, communities began to
create a “Code of Ethics” as a reference point available to all. Even though people have their own
individual ethical concerns, the code allows for everyone to essentially have the same “ethics” when
creating new technology.
In EE 394, we discussed many ethical issues including; electronic voting, self-driving cars, and
actual cases that have technology based ethical concerns. One heavily discussed case was with the
Amazon Echo. The police attempted to use the recorded data that the echo had processed. Using the
metadata would allow the police to see when high activity happened during the night. The ethical
concern originated with the police using the private data of the device. Personally, I believe Amazon
should help the police to solve the murder case, because the data could either exonerate or convict a
criminal rightfully. Others in the group believed that Amazon not releasing the data was the correct
thing to do. They believed that people had the right to privacy and giving that information to the police
will have breaks the professional contract that Amazon has with its customers. I think that everyone in
the group could understand how others view the ethical concerns of the case. We were not able to
make a consensus on which view on the case’s ethics is correct. I hold my position on this subject
because of number one in the IEEE code of ethics. It states “to hold paramount the safety, heath, and
welfare of the public...” I believe that putting a murderer or exonerating an innocent man is looking
toward the public’s welfare. The Code of ethics also state, “to avoid real or perceived conflicts of
interest whenever possible…” in number two. I believe this is the argument that others in my group
used. This situation is a conflict of interest for Amazon because of personal data is going to go public
because of Amazon, without permission of the client. The code does state “whenever possible” and I
believe that to fulfil code number one it is not possible to fulfill this code. This suggests the ethical
decision is to allow the police access to the metadata.
The IEEE Code of Ethics lists many different obligations that its members must fallow. One of
these obligations is “to be honest and realistic in stating claims or estimates based on available data.”
This obligation is important, because releasing statistics to the public that do not accurately represent
the product tricks the consumer into purchasing something that will not work as expected or can even
put consumers into dangerous situations. This can be done in many ways. One example of this was the
Ford Pinto. The Pinto did not meet the safety specification, but Ford said that it did. This put many
people in danger and killed some customers. Another example is the Volkswagen cheated emission
tests. These vehicles created 40 times more pollution than what is allowable. These decisions were just
made to trick the consumers and agencies that are in place to protect society as a whole.