Ad Blocking and the Privacy Background for an Ethical Approach

Question: Discuss about theAd Blocking and the Privacy Background for an Ethical Approach. Answer: Introduction Ads can be super annoying especially when they interrupt your content by constant pop-ups or auto play videos on your site. They are more frustrating when they breach ones privacy. It is quite alarming that when you search for a product like Vanilla' on Google the next time you visit Face book you see an ad for Vanilla. How does Face book get the information about which websites you visit? In the last quarter of 2015, news was all over that ad companies could communicate between the current devices (Cecil, 2015). Due to these trends, companies have created software to block unwanted ads from appearing on the users devices. The failure by the advertisers to fix the network will call for adoption of the ad-blockers. This will be a disadvantage to the advertising companies, and they will be forced to either pay the ad blocking technologies to white list their stuff lest they collapse (Taylor, 2015). Trusting the ad-blockers to block the advertisers ads would be similar to the phenomenon of the cat guarding the milk pot. The Ethical Dilemma In the modern internet subculture, advertising companies seek to collect more data from the consumers than ever before in history. The internet related companies are faced with a dilemma that cuts across the privacy of the consumers and the profits against one another. This paper surveys this moral dilemma and gives some insights and recommendations that companies and stakeholders should explore about ensuring privacy in the modern digital era. Utilitarian Analysis The utilitarian theory is a normative ethical theory grounded on the ideas of Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill (Bowden Smythe, 2010). The philosophers argue that the goals of our daily acts whether good or bad are channeled towards some effect (Shoemaker, 2011). The goodness of the consequences of individual acts justifies the means followed, whether desirable or non-desirable. The utilitarian approach has been ranked the top theory to be applied in the dilemma of online privacy. The fact that the situation involves a wide range of stakeholders, with the aim of maximizing opportunities, explains the reason why this theory is the most just way to analyze the dilemma. Those who subscribe to the utilitarian approach argue that humans should build on utilities. Precisely, happiness and value should be maximized and loss and harm minimized (Bock, 2015). The primary focus of this theory is laid on the major stakeholders: the internet consumers and the companies offering the web services. Ideally, the web services companies would be closed down, and there would be no privacy concerns to be anxious about. In the other hand, the internet users would have no service providers to control their data. Since the consumers have little knowledge about the internet, they will be absolutely unable to manage their data (Bock, 2015). Internet service providers should first con duct a utility test on the consumer data to be obtained. A good rapport ought to be created between consumers and the technology based industries. The negative impact of the data collection practices should be considered rather than engaging in profit based attractions. Also, when companies engage much data from the consumers, there is a likelihood of destabilizing the trust from the clients. Most probably, users will avoid the sites collecting too much data from them leading to a collapse. Deontological Analysis The deontological theory is a prominent moral approach put across by a celebrated philosopher named Immanuel Kant (Marques, 2015). The theory is substantially rooted on the assumption that all the decision reached is aimed to meet a preset maxim (the intention of the act) (Bowden Smythe, 2010). This implies that our intentions determine our daily actions. Kant presupposes that humans are guided by a universal code of moral conduct. This contributes to his conclusion that a decision must be guided by goodwill. Good' is universal, and thus it applies to all. In this perspective, an act is good by itself and does not need a justification from the outcome. In the application of the deontological theory to the moral dilemma one fundamental concept ought to be considered, the goodness of the act.' The action to be examined in this case as earlier mentioned in the ethical dilemma is the interference with consumer privacy.' Ideally, all the states in the world condemn the violation of one's privacy. Any individual or firm accused of violating the rule of privacy should be taken through serious legal measures. If all states disregard this act, then it is universally wrong. It is not good by itself, and therefore it cannot be justified by Kantian moral theory. Virtue Theory Analysis The virtue ethics theory was propounded by a Greek philosopher, Aristotle. Aristotle proposes that an individual who is well endowed with virtues has an ideal moral character (Stocker, 2011). He pays more attention to the centrality of personality and character. What gears people towards doing the right? According to Aristotle, it is either because they have amoral duty to do so or to gratify the moral obligation of their state (Stocker, 2011). The virtue theory deduces that all human activities are aimed at a good goal. However, Aristotle stresses on the need to strike a balance between desires and delight. Therefore, the role-players in any dilemma should adhere to the moral dictates to reach a credible solution. A righteous person acts consistently and honors his/her boundaries. He or she always commits to his/her set code of moral conduct. The internet dependent companies ought to exercise this. Their moral stands should not be swayed by desires. Violating privacy is obviously not an act of virtue. The companies should safeguard the privacy of their clients at all costs. The advertisers must practice an ideal moral character. To ensure a more transparent ecosystem, there is the need to keep off the controversial game on the internet. The virtue ethical approach requires any organization to be self-reflective to determine whether its behavior is fulfilling enough to meet its vision (Holley, 2012). Companies with strong virtues do not engage in data tracking and surveillance. Contrast Theory Analysis The contract-based theory assumes that an act is qualified to be good or dismissed to be bad by justice (Cha, 2015). This means that the good and bad must be in line with the ideas of the society structuring a social contract. This theory stresses on the need to consider not only our interests but also the happiness of the others. About the moral dilemma, all the stakeholders playing a role on the internet have to create an ecosystem that could accommodate all their interests (Berry, 2010). To ensure this, the consumers must loosen their privacy conditions, and the service producers avoid creeping too much into the consumer content. Conclusion The best way for enhancing privacy in the internet servers is only through taking a great caution while using the internet. The consumers should read and understand the privacy policies outlined in the sites and avoid the websites that they dislike their policies. However putting the whole load on the consumers could be impractical and unjust. The industries and the government should also address the ethical issue. In order to reach a plausible conclusion, all the ethical theories should be considered. With the basics of utility, virtue, and rights, the decision makers will be able to satisfactorily address the issues surrounding internet privacy. References Berry, D. M. (2010). Internet research: privacy, ethics and alienation: an open source approach. Internet Research, 14(4), 323-332. Bock, M. (2015, March 11). The Ethics of Internet Software and Consumer Privacy. Retrieved September 13, 2017, from Medium: https://medium.com/@michaelrbock/the-ethics-of-internet-software-and-consumer-privacy-a798b8b3edc8 Bowden, P., Smythe, V. (2010). Theories on Teaching Training Ethics. Journal of Business Ethics and Organization Studies, 13(2), 21-24. Cecil, A. (2015, November 19). 11 ad blockers to protect your privacy. Retrieved September 18, 2017, from Policy Genius: https://www.policygenius.com/blog/11-ad-blockers-to-protect-your-privacy/ Cha, M.-R. (2015). Neo-Confucianism and Modern Virtue Ethics : On the Contrast between Self-Cultivation and Personal Ethics. 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