Computer Ethics, Sum 2023

Mondays and Wednesdays 6:00-7:30+

Class 8 Readings

Before class 8, finish reading chapter 1 of Baase and read the first three sections of chapter 4.

Videos:

    ECPA
    Theories of Privacy
    Section 230



paper 2, due 6/21


The US is Openly Stockpiling Dirt on All Its Citizens

That is, the government is buying information that the courts said they could not collect themselves without a warrant. Like location history.

www.wired.com/story/odni-commercially-available-information-report.

Amazon-Apple price-fixing suit

Amazon and Apple have an agreement to feature Apple's high-end stuff on Amazon. In particular, refurbished equipment is barely available, if at all.

arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/06/judge-allows-apple-and-amazon-price-fixing-lawsuit-to-move-forward.

Edge sends images you view online to Microsoft

Well, links actually, for "image enhancement". But it's pretty revealing user data.

www.neowin.net/news/edge-sends-images-you-view-online-to-microsoft-here-is-how-to-disable-that.

The Economics Behind Copyright Fair Use: A Principled and Predictable Body of Law

lawecommons.luc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1610&context=luclj.

Google's Online Advertising Violates EU Antitrust Laws

Google does do some creepy stuff.

www.nytimes.com/2023/06/14/technology/google-antitrust-european-union.html.

Google runs the ad-bidding markets, collects the user-browsing-ad-targeting data, and also buys the majority of online ad placements.

The US Dept of Justice sued Google for advertising antitrust back in January.

Apple and CSAM

In Fall 2021 Apple announced a plan -- now suspended -- to monitor your iPhone for child pornography:

Here is an article about this: "Your Phone Is Your Private Space": theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/09/spyware-your-iphone-step-too-far-privacy/619987. The author writes that "future iPhones will almost inevitably scan for more than child porn". First, is this the real risk we're worrying about? Certainly Facebook is censoring more and more content. Would Apple start censoring iMessages that were insufficiently respectful of minority groups?

That your phone is your private space is an excellent point, but also a missed one. Apple is not proposing to check the photos on your phone; they are proposing to check the photos you save on iCloud. This gives Apple a little more credibility; they simply don't want to be storing anyone's child pornography for them. But does it matter that Apple was going to do the scanning on the phone, as part of the process of uploading to iCloud?

Finally, Apple's CSAM approach here is doubtless driven in part by government pressure (such as the EARN IT act).





Debate signup

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1VlmxehNLAWjL5POYTQzVU3T1kTzvq63ine46NujeZ5w


Privacy from commercial interests

Section 230: Batzel v Cremers