Describing Issue
It has become public knowledge that most governments conduct digital surveillance on their citizens. In June, 2013, information emerged about the “PRISM” program, a mass surveillance data mining program managed by the National Security Agency (Marthews & Tucker, 2015). This incident brought awareness to the fact that most governments have formed partnerships with technology companies to access real-time data. Governments have passed policies such as the Patriot Act to support surveillance with the assertion of national security. Such policies affect the public in general because their privacy is compromised. Well, it is undeniable that surveillance has been useful in tracking terrorists and criminals, but recent NSA events showed that NSA officials occasionally access private information for personal use.
Problem Statement
Government surveillance agencies have cited security concerns to support its actions; however, what has the government done to address ethical issues that arise from digital surveillance? Alternatively, what should be done to increase accountability in surveillance agencies?
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Analysis –Kidder’s Model
Recognize the Moral issue
Government surveillance program is not a clear cut policy, it is a moral issue in that it involves personal information that individuals consider private and do not want it to be disclosed. Hence, the invasion of privacy remains the major moral issue. Just because government surveillance is legal does not mean that it is moral. Accessing private information that is meant for the recipient only is not right, especially when the system in place has major flaws.
Determining the Actor
The second aspect of Kidder’s model is determining the actor (Baker, 1997). As a moral issue, government surveillance affects both the public and government. Both actors are empowered to do something about privacy violation due to surveillance, but, the government is in a better position to do so. The government can come up with stricter policies to regulate NSA to ensure that the agency does not step out of line regarding surveillance.
Gather the relevant facts
The most relevant fact is that government is involved in surveillance, and has been involved in it since 9/11. NSA has admitted to using metadata to track personal information such as phone calls, texts and email. The surveillance agency is empowered by the Patriot Act and FISA Act (Watney, 2015). Regardless of the legality, the government has been very secretive about the surveillance program and it makes the public wonder about the exact extent of government surveillance.
Test for right-versus-wrong issues
In testing for right-versus-wrong, four tests are involved: legal test, intuition test, publicity test and moral exemplar test (Baker, 1997). Government surveillance is legal, and the government has empowered NSA with the responsibility of surveillance. However, government surveillance fails the intuition, publicity, and moral exemplar tests. It is still considered morally wrong, and though the public is aware of the reasons behind government surveillance, the extreme secrecy about it raises concerns (Watney, 2015).
Test for right-versus-right paradigm
The applicable right-versus-right paradigm is individual versus community (Baker, 1997). While individuals are entitled to privacy, the government has a responsibility to do whatever it takes to protect the community. After 9/11, it became evident that terrorists are capable of causing a lot of harm to the society, and the government considered the violation of individual privacy a small price to pay to ensure the safety of the society.
Apply the resolution Principles
There are different resolution principles based on different ethical theories (Baker, 1997). John Stuart Mill proposes an end-based resolution that will ensure the greater good for all, this theory might support government surveillance, if it is conducted according to the wishes of the people to ensure the greater good. The rule-based principle suggests that rules must be followed; hence enforcing surveillance because it is legal. Lastly, care-based resolution advocates for a decision that upholds respect for all the actors.
Investigate the Trilemmas
The government could explore an option of surveilling suspects only, instead of surveilling the entire population, however, it is an unlikely alternative. Also, the government can inform the public about the security measures in place to ensure that the government surveillance program remains accountable.
Make the decision
Government surveillance program is a reality, and despite the objection, the government shows no sign of ending it (Marthews & Tucker, 2015). Government surveillance remains unethical, but it has become a necessary evil in today’s society. Therefore, the government should increase accountability, and come up with more policies to ensure personal data is not misused by personnel in the surveillance program. Utilitarianism supports the government surveillance, if it is done effectively to achieve greater good.
Reflect on the decision
Omand (2013) states that the continued freedom of the world depends on the existence of agencies like the NSA. Protecting civil liberties such as rights to privacy is the duty of the government, and yet the government is doing the exact opposite in the surveillance program. However, incidents such as 9/11 showed the government the need for more drastic action to ensure national security, such actions include government surveillance. Both rule-based and end-based ethical theories support government surveillance if it is done properly. Hence, the government must ensure that there is sustainable cause and integrity in the process. The government should come up with policy to ensure that only proportionate methods of surveillance are used to avoid further intrusion into the private affairs (Omand, 2013). Lastly, the government should at least be guided by reasonable prospect of success,instead of wasting its resources and violating people’s privacy.
References
Baker, S. (1997). Applying Kidder's ethical decision-making checklist to media ethics. Journal of Mass Media Ethics , 12 (4), 197-210.
Marthews, A., & Tucker, C. (2015). Government surveillance and internet search behavior. Available at SSRN 2412564 .
Omand, D. (2013). NSA leaks: how to make surveillance both ethical and effective. The guardian. Retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/jun/11/make-surveillance-ethical-and- effective
Watney, M. (2015, August). Intensifying State Surveillance of Electronic Communications: A Legal Solution in Addressing Extremism or Not? In Availability, Reliability and Security (ARES), 2015 10th International Conference on (pp. 367-373). IEEE.
