1. Chapter 11
Managing Information Systems Ethics and Crime

2. The Three Waves of Change
The Third Wave by Alvin Toffler describes three phases or “waves of changes”
First wave
A civilization based on agriculture and handwork
Relatively primitive stage
Lasted thousands of years

3. The Three Waves of Change (cont’d)
Second wave
The Industrial Revolution
Began at the end of the 18th century and lasted about 150 years
Third wave
The Information Age
Information becomes the currency

4. Computer Literacy Computer literacy Necessary skill in today’s world
May be the difference between being employed or unemployed
Many different jobs involve the use of computers

5. Digital Divide Major ethical challenge New class system of power
Power comes from knowledge
The gap in the United States is shrinking
Rural communities, the elderly, people with disabilities, and minorities lag behind national averages
Widening gap between developed and developing countries

6. One Laptop Per Child (OLPC)
Make Internet access affordable for everyone
Goal is to get the price down to $100 each for governments and charities to buy
Target: Children in developing world

7. Computer Ethics
Issues and standards of conduct pertaining to the use of information systems
1986—Richard O. Mason article
Most ethical debates relate to:
Information privacy
Information accuracy
Information property
Information accessibility

8. Information Privacy What information should you have to reveal?
Information you might want to keep private:
Social security number
Medical history
Family history
Identity theft
Fastest growing “information” crime
Biometrics for better protection

9. Information Privacy (cont’d)
Companies seem to know about our every move—how much information do we need to reveal?
Amazon.com is famous for personalization
What are the costs?

10. Identity Theft Fastest growing “information crimes”
Stealing another person’s:
Credit card number
Social Security number
Other personal information
Results in bad credit for victim

11. How to Maintain Your Privacy Online
Review the privacy policy of the company with which you are transacting
The policy should indicate:
What information is being gathered about you
How the seller will use this information
Whether and how you can “opt out” of these practices
Additional tips:
Choose Web sites monitored by independent organizations
Avoid having cookies left on your machine
Visit sites anonymously
Use caution when requesting confirmation

12. Information Accuracy
Ensuring of the authenticity and fidelity of information
High costs of incorrect information
Banks
Hospitals
Difficult to track down the person who made the mistake

13. Avoid Getting Conned in Cyberspace
U.S. Federal Trade Commission compiled a list of advices (List of top 10 things not to do)

14. Avoid Getting Conned in Cyberspace (cont’d)

15. Information Property Who owns information about individuals?
How can this information be sold and exchanged?

16. Data Privacy Statements
Company maintaining the database with customer information legally owns it
Is free to sell it
Cannot sell information it agreed not to share
Must insure proper data handling practices

17. Spam, Cookies, and Spyware
Unsolicited
CAN-SPAM Act of 2003
Little protection available
Cookies
Text file storing Web browsing activity
Can opt for cookies not to be stored
Web sites might not function properly without cookies
Spyware
Software used for data collection without the users’ knowledge
Unlikely this activity will become illegal anytime soon

18. Cybersquatting
The practice of registering a domain name and later reselling it
Example: Eminem Victim
Some of the victims include:
Panasonic, Hertz, Avon
Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act in 1999
Fines as high as $100,000
Some companies pay the cybersquatters to speed up the process of getting the domain

19. Digital Rights Management (DRM)
Technology solution to control digital content
Music, movies, books, and so on
Some critics, “digital restriction management”
Digital watermarking
Electronic version of physical watermarks

20. Information Accessibility
Who has the right to monitor the information?
Example: capture by Carnivore

21. Carnivore
Developed by the government to monitor all cyber communication
In 2005 FBI abandoned Carnivore for commercially available software

22. Need for a Code of Ethical Conduct
Many businesses have guidelines for appropriate use
Universities endorse guidelines proposed by EduCom

23. Need for a Code of Ethical Conduct (cont’d)
Responsible computer use (based on work of the Computer Ethics Institute) prohibits:
Using a computer to harm others
Interfering with other people’s computer work
Snooping in other people’s files
Using a computer to steal
Using a computer to bear false witness
Copying or using proprietary software without paying for it
Using other people’s computer resources without authorization
Appropriating other people’s intellectual output

24. Computer Crime Using a computer to commit an illegal act
Targeting a computer—unauthorized access
Using a computer to commit an offense
Using a computer to support a criminal activity
Overall trend of computer crime declining

25. Types of Computer Crimes and Financial Losses
Figures based on a survey of 194 organizations

26. Financial Impact of Virus Attacks
Losses from computer crime can be tremendous
$14.2 billion in estimated losses due to viruses alone in 2005

27. Unauthorized Computer Access
Using computer systems with no authority to gain such access
Other examples from the media
Employees steal time on company computers to do personal business
Intruders break into government Web sites and change information displayed
Thieves steal credit card numbers and buy merchandise

28. Unauthorized computer access
11-28
Frequency of successful attacks is declining

29. Federal and State Laws Two main federal laws against computer crime
Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1986 prohibits:
Stealing or compromising data
Gaining access to computers owned by the U.S. government
Violating data belonging to financial institutions
Intercepting communication between foreign countries
Threatening to damage computer systems in order to gain profit
1996 Amendment prohibits:
Dissemination of computer viruses and other harmful code

30. Federal and State Laws (cont’d)
Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986
Breaking into any electronic communication service is a crime
USA PATRIOT Act of 2002
Controversial law
Investigators may monitor voice communication
Other laws
Patent laws protect some software and hardware
Right to Financial Privacy Act
All 50 states passed laws prohibiting computer crime

31. Computer Forensics
11-31
Use of formal investigative techniques to evaluate digital information
Evaluation of storage devices for traces of illegal activity
Now common in murder cases
Restoration of deleted files
Honeypots used to entice and catch hackers and crackers

32. Hacking and Cracking Hackers Crackers Hacktivists
Individuals gaining unauthorized access
Motivated by curiosity
No intentions to do harm
Crackers
Break into computers with the intention of doing harm
Hacktivists
Break into computer systems to promote political or ideological goals

33. Types of Criminals No clear profile as to who commits computer crimes
Four groups of computer criminals
Current or former employees
85-95% of theft from businesses comes from the inside
People with technical knowledge committing crimes for personal gain
Career criminals using computers to assist them in crimes
Outside crackers hoping to find information of value
About 12% of cracker attacks cause damage

34. Types of Computer Crimes

35. Types of Computer Crimes (cont’d)

36. Software Piracy Legal activities Illegal activities
Making one backup copy for personal use
Sharing free software (shareware or public domain software)
Illegal activities
Making copies of purchased software for others
Offering stolen proprietary software (warez peddling)
Applicable copyright laws
1980 Computer Software Copyright Act
1992 Act making software piracy a felony
1997 No Electronic Theft (NET) Act

37. Software Piracy Is a Global Business
Worldwide losses for 2005 estimated at $34 billion
Some factors influencing piracy around the world
Concept of intellectual property differs between countries
Economic reasons for piracy
Lack of public awareness about the issue

38. Software Piracy Terms Intellectual property (IP) Patents Copyrights
Creations of the mind(s)
Example, Music, software, etc.
Patents
Process, machine or material of inventions
Example: Amazon’s “one-click” buying experience
Copyrights
Legal way of protecting IP
1980 Computer Software Copyright Act

39. Computer Viruses and Other Destructive Code
Malware (malicious software)
1,400 new pieces released in one month
Viruses
Reproduce themselves
Usually delete or destroy files
Boot sector viruses
File infector viruses
Viruses can spread through attachments

40. How a Computer Virus Is Spread

41. Worms, Trojan Horses, and Other Sinister Programs
Does not destroy files
Designed to copy and send itself
Brings computers down by clogging memory
Trojan horse
Does not copy itself
Often remains hidden to the user
Logic bombs and time bombs
Variations of Trojan horse
Do not disrupt computer function until triggering event/operation

42. Internet Hoaxes False messages circulated online
New viruses (that don’t exist)
2004 told recipients to erase a file that was actually a part of Windows operating system
Collection of funds for certain group
Cancer causes
Possible consequences
Spammers harvesting addresses from hoaxes

43. Cyber Harassment, Stalking, and Bullying
Crime that broadly refers to the use of a computer to communicate:
Obscene, vulgar, or threatening content
Cyber stalking
Making false accusations that damage reputation
Gaining information on a victim by monitoring online activates
Using the Internet to encouraging other to harass a victim
Attacking data and equipment of a victim
Using the Internet to place false goods or orders

44. Cyber Bullying Cyber bullying Online predator
The deliberate cause of emotional distress to a victim
Online predator
Typically target vulnerable population for sexual or financial purposes
“To Catch a Predator” Chris Hanson—NBC Dateline

45. Cyberwar
Military’s attempt to disrupt or destroy other country’s information and communication systems
Goal is to diminish opponent’s communication capabilities
Used in concert with traditional methods

46. Cyberwar Vulnerabilities
Command and control systems
Intelligence collection and distribution systems
Information processing and distribution systems
Tactical communication systems and methods
Troop and weapon positioning systems
Friend-or-foe identification systems
Smart weapons systems

47. The New Cold War
A 2007 report on Internet security listed a cyber cold war as a threat
Patriot Hackers—independent citizens that attack perceived enemies of the state
In 2006 the U.S. Air Force launched Cyber Command
See Figure 11.22

48. Cyberterrorism Governments not involved
Can be launched from anywhere in the world
Goal is to cause fear, panic, and destruction
Cyberterrorism will likely become weapon of choice

49. Categories of Potential Cyberterrorist Attacks

50. Use of Internet in Terrorist Attacks

51. Use of Internet in Terrorist Attacks (cont’d)

52. Assessing the Cyberterrorism Threat
The U.S. Department of Defense
Popular target for hackers and crackers
60-90 attempts a day
Some successful attacks
1991—Gulf War
Dutch crackers stole information about the movement of U.S. troops and offered it for sale to Iraq
Iraqis turned down the offer
2000—U.S. presidential elections
Web sites targeted with political motives
DoS attacks launched
2007—Government and bank networks within Estonia came under attack for the removal of a Soviet-era memorial

53. Obstacles to Cyberterrorism
Computer systems are complex and attacks may not have desired outcome
Fast-changing security measures
Cyberattacks rarely cause physical harm to victims