Issues in the Edward Snowden Case
Discuss about the Complexity Of Developing Personal Code Of Ethics.
Edward Snowden was an employee of the defense contractor, working in National Security Agency, who was responsible for the phenomenal leak in the history of US national security. He leaked significant information about the surveillance programs of the national agency in which the agency collected and used data mining on the phone and telephone traffic of the terrorists. After leaking the information, Snowden fled from the country. It was a controversial situation as a few people considered him as traitor leaking the documents of national security whereas some people considered him a whistle-blower, who drew attention to the breach in the human rights. The present is the era of information technology, wherein the information is the main strategic resource, upon which the individuals, companies and the major industries rely. The information and the sensitive data can also be used for significant malicious intent (Sher, 2012). In this light, the information ethics have been formed, which can prevent the ethical breach in the field of information technology. The information ethics emphasize maintaining ethical standards in maintaining, distribution and governance if data and information technology. There are several issues in storage, transmission and handling of data such as data privacy, intellectual property and the misrepresentation of scholarly facts. The information leak by Edward Snowden is also an ethical dilemma, which will be analyzed through Doing Ethics Technique. The ACS code of Ethics will also be used to analyze same case.
The doing ethics is the most common and simple technique to analyze the case of the ethical dilemma. I the present section, doing ethics technique is applied on the case of Edward Snowden.
Edward Snowden leaked sensitive data of national security by giving confidential documents to various newspapers such as Washington Post and The Guardian. At that time, Snowden was working for a contractor of National Security Agency, named Booz Allen Hamilton. The government of USA accused that Snowden has breached the confidentiality terms. He has breached the law of Espionage Act 1917, which states that the leak if confidential information of the organization is a breach of law. In response to this, Snowden stated that he did not reveal information, which can negatively impact on the national security (Singer, 2013). Further, he made the citizens of the USA aware that the government is intruding their personal lives.
Stakeholders and Impact
The case of Edward Snowden and its implications can be summarized in the following facts:
- Edward Snowden was a former CIA agent, who leaked confidential information regarding the surveillance program, PRISM to newspaper agencies and media. He also leaked the file, which establishes that the national security agencies of different countries are sharing the electronic information with each other.
- In response to the accusations, the US government stated that Snowden breached the confidentiality terms. Further, the government has to conduct the surveillance in order to track terrorism activities.
- The USA government also stated that Snowden breached and violated the privacy laws regarding the Espionage Act 1917. The act prohibits a USS citizen from revealing any information which is disloyal, profane or abusive towards the country or the USA government (McAskill, 2016).
- Snowden was an employee of CIA-contractor agency Booz Allen Hamilton and used the official access to leak the documents. Further, it is also established that Snowden took the job to obtain confidential documents from NSA surveillance program.
- Snowden committed the act for the goodwill of the citizens. He wanted to increase awareness that the personal information of the users is data mined and explored. The people assumed that there personal and private communication is not shared cannot be accessed. Snowden aimed to reduce the misconception and make people aware that their electronic communication is analyzed in government surveillance (Melden, 2013).
- There are significant numbers of supporters, who support Snowden in his revelation of private data.
There are several key issues in the present case:
The primary issue in the case is that the actions of that Snowden leaked the information, which was confidential in terms of national security. He wanted to raise awareness that although people assumed that their information is safe with the telecommunication companies and the government, it is secretly analyzed for any potential lead towards the terrorism activities. The aim of the NSA was goodwill towards the public welfare. In the past, there have been a large number of terrorist activities in the country, which has motivated the government agencies to identify any clue, which can prevent the terrorist activities in the country (Birsh, 2013). However, the agency took wrong measure in identifying the potential lead.
Another issue is that Edward Snowden also took access of illegal means in accessing the confidential government information and handing it over to the newspaper agencies in the country.
The revelation portrayed the US government in a negative light. The USA citizens also realized that they have little privacy in the country, which created mistrust towards the government. Later, Snowden flew away from the country, which raised a question towards his integrity (Szoldra, 2016). If Snowden was right at his place, he should not have flew from the country.
There are various stakeholders of Edward Snowden case. Different stakeholders and the extent of impact on the incident on these stakeholders has also been discussed in this section:
Edward Snowden was at the center of this accident. He revealed sensitive and confidential information from the government records. After leaking the information from the government records, he flew from the country. He sent asylum requests to several countries and moved to the country, which accepted him and could provide him with maximum security (Broad, 2014). The whole incident of NSA information leak had a strong impact on the life and career of Snowden.
Another major stakeholder in the controversy of Edward Snowden is the US government. The confidential information leak has negatively influenced the relationship of the US government with other countries. The citizens of the USA also have started mistrusting the USA government. The people were convinced that the government takes special efforts in maintaining the privacy of the government. However, the present case is showing the government itself is breaching the user privacy in the electronic media (Broad, 2014). The Obama administration has created policies, which prevents the National Surveillance Agency from collecting data from internet mediums and phone calls without the approval from the senior authority. This incidence has also brought criticism from different countries such as Russia and Germany. They have also reduced the commercial activities with the country. The Russian government also criticized the incident and offered asylum to Edward Snowden.
Options for Addressing the Situation
The US citizens were deeply affected by the incident. The citizens were concerned that their private information and can be used against them anytime. There were reports that the search queries related the terrorist organization and activities declined substantially after the incidence (Menn, 2016). Further, Apple also took a legal stand against sharing the personal information related to the user activity after the incident. Several companies such as Facebook and Google take measures to encrypt the user data although it cost them a significant amount of financial investment (Hattem, 2016).
There was mixed response to the situation if Edward Snowden leaking the information to the media. A few US citizens were happy with the actions of Snowden as he provided information regarding the secret program, which can impact the privacy of the users. The secret program of the government is violating the privacy of the users. Further, the US government was upset with the actions of Snowden as he breached his official duty by leaking the confidential documents of the government (Edgar, 2016). Snowden has breached his ethical duties, which makes him liable for legal trial. He conducted an unethical act and according to Espionage Act, his actions can be later trailed at the court.
Overall this incident portrayed the US government in a negative light and it was deeply affected by the whole incident. Therefore, it is important that the US government takes appropriate measures so that such incidence never happens in future. Firstly, the government should make policies so that NSA and other surveillance or detective agencies cannot access the user data without the permission of appropriate legal authorities. Further, in order to assure secrecy of the government missions, the government should control the access of confidential files for all the employees. The government should also focus on bringing Edward Snowden back to the USA and give him a fair trial. Although he has conducted lawfully wrong actions by leaking the private information of the government, his intention behind the revelation should be analyzed (Black & Roberts, 2011). The government should also be concerned by the fact that he might have other confidential documents and may leak them later.
There are several options, which can be used to address the issue. In the present times, the US government has taken several legal actions against the US government, which has prevented Snowden from entering the country. The US government is also creating propaganda that he is a potential threat to the country and has collected confidential data, which can be detrimental to the security of the country. The government should also focus on developing a system, which can detect any violation to the confidential system and immediately notify the concerned authority. The government should implement policies, which can prevent the surveillance agencies from collecting the information from the electronic media without the proper permission of the legal authorities (McDermid, 2015). It will assist the organizations in regaining trust from the citizens of the country. Snowden will also be ready to come back to the country, when he will realize that there will be a fair trial upon him.
The ACS Code of Ethics
There are several actions, which can be used to address the situation of ethical dilemma. According to the ethical analysis, the best option for the US government is to change their policy regarding the collection of public and private data without the permission of court. It is the best action for the government as it will assist the government to regain the trust of public enterprises. The current action will also improve the foreign relations of the country. The USA government should also implement policies, which assures that if Snowden will come back in the country, he will be given a fair trial.
The ACS Code of Ethics states that a professional should advance the honor and a professional. There are six value mentioned in the ACS code of conduct, which are the primacy of the public interest, the enhancement of quality of life, honesty, competence, professional development and professionalism.
The primacy of the public interest states that it is the duty of the professionals to keep the public interest at the highest priority. The ACS code of Ethics state that it is the duty of the young professionals to give highest importance to the public interest. It means that the public interest should be kept before the organizational or personal interest. In the present, Snowden followed the ACS code of ethics, as he kept the public interest before the organization’s interest. He revealed the sensitive government data to make the people aware that their private information is invaded by the government (Brinkman, Gotterbarn, Miller & Wolf, 2016). Snowden collected and revealed sensitive information regarding how the government agency is collecting data by collecting information from the telephone calls and internet traffics. Snowden violated his duty for the interest of public.
This principle focuses on the impact of the professional’s action on the lives of the people. The professionals should focus on improving the lives of the people with their actions. The development in information technology has a significant impact on the lives of the people. The technology has made the lives of the people comfortable and has become an essential part of the people’s lives.
In the present, there is intense competition among the business organizations, which motivates the companies in taking wrong or unethical decisions. In the present, the companies are using wrong methods to achieve their business aims. The ACS code of Ethics are strictly prohibits deception and fraudulent activities at the workplace. In the present case, NSA was collecting information from the internet users, without their awareness (Lang, Macfadyen, Slade, Prinsloo & Sclater, 2018, March). The data theft can be a serious security issue; therefore, the current action of Snowden is ethical. Further, it can be stated that Snowden also breached the principle of honesty by leaking the confidential information of the public. Therefore, in both the cases, the users have used dishonesty.
According to this principle, a professional should only accept the work, which he can complete with excellence. The professionals should be competent in completing their work according to the directions of the customers. Further, the professionals should understand his capabilities and limitations and take work accordingly. According to this principle, the government should only analyze the data, which is permissible (Brinkman & Sanders, 2012). If there is security concern, the agency should take special permission from the government agencies so that they fulfill the competency principle of the ACS code of Ethics.
The principle of professional development states that an individual should ensure that he has the knowledge of latest developments in technology. He should constantly strive to enhance his knowledge regarding the latest technology. In the present case, Snowden was well-aware of different programs ad tactics, which were used to collect and store the data collected through data mining on the data of the users (Berleur & Brunnstein, 2016). Snowden collected sensitive information form the government and distributed to the media agencies, so that the public can see the data.
According to this principle, a person should complete all his professional duties with professionalism. He should maintain adequate professional conduct while performing any action. ACS emphasize on focusing the confidence of the people and building the trust on the ICT community. According to this principle, appropriate action should be taken against whistleblowers.
Conclusion
Conclusively, it can be stated that there are certain ethical issues in the whistleblowing act of Snowden. The Snowden case can be analyzed through DET technique. According to the findings, Snowden breached the Espionage Act and compromised the national security by the whistleblowing Act. According to ACS code of conduct, his actions were ethical to some extent as they were taken for the public welfare.
Reference List
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McAskill, E. (2016). Edward Snowden makes ‘moral’ case for presidential pardon. The Guardian. [Online]. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/sep/13/edward-snowden-why-barack-obama-should-grant-me-a-pardon [Accessed on: 10 May 2018].
McDermid, D. (2015). Ethics in ICT: An Australian Perspective. Pearson Higher Education AU.
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Menn, J. (2016). Traffic to Wikipedia terrorism entries plunged after Snowden revelations, study finds. Reuters. [Online] Available at: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-wikipedia-usage-idUSKCN0XO080 [Accessed 3 February 2018].
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Szoldra, P. (2016). This is everything Edward Snowden revealed in one year of unprecedented top-secret leaks. [Online]. Available at: https://www.businessinsider.in/This-is-everything-Edward-Snowden-revealed-in-one-year-of-unprecedented-top-secret-leaks/articleshow/54367926.cms [Accessed on: 10 May 2018].
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