The internet has evolved over the years to become an essential aspect of our lives today. There are many uses of the internet, including information research, communication, entertainment, and news updates. With the introduction of smartphones that enable users to access the internet by the palm of their hands and a touch of a few buttons, the internet has increased the amount of user data processed by various organizations daily on the internet. This heavy usage of the internet has brought about many ethical concerns that have required the intervention on the law through rulings, law, and regulation. This paper aims at identifying some of these rulings, law or regulation and the effect they have on internet usage.
Copyright Law
The internet is full of information, and each piece of information on the internet has copyright, which is the tool that protects an individual's work from being acquired and used by others as their own. Copyright laws exist to protect content on the internet and also create a sense of entitlement for the content published on the internet. There are several rights granted to content owners and creators on the internet. The rights govern what content owners can do with the work they publish and also the ability to license their work to others. Copyright laws allow the content owner and creator the right to reproduce their content, create derivative material from the original copy, distribute copies of content for sale and even transfer ownership of content ( Grimmelmann, 2016 ).
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Copyright laws have had a positive impact on the internet user because it has reduced the rate of copyright fraud. This law gives content creators the freedom to create and update their content without worry of malice. The law also dictates that one does not require registered copyright to use the copyright symbol. Most organizations today that have operations online producing their content benefit greatly from the copyright law. Online systems are also protected through the copyright laws, and any infringement of the law has serious consequences, including heavy penalties and even a jail term. The copyright law has protected many content creators and businesses today, and any new changes that might be made will be amendments to keep up with advancing technology.
Patent Law
The internet is an innovative space and free for scientists, researchers, engineers, and software developers to host their inventions for the world to see and use. The United State Patent Law, therefore, exists to protect inventors and their creations. Advancement in technology over the years has increased the number of innovations and patents have become a vital component of most innovations on the internet. A patent is granted today by the government to protect various aspects of innovations on the internet, including business process, models, and applications on the internet. An example of the case of Whelan Associates, Inc. v. Jaslow Dental Laboratory, Inc in the mid-1980s, the court rules that "copyright protection of computer programs may extend beyond the programs' literal code to their structure, sequence, and organization" (Becker, 1986, p. 18).
Most technology companies today use legal patents to protect their computer software and innovations from misappropriation. The privacy standards offered by the US patent law are stringent protecting computer innovations from use, reproduction, or sale without the owner's approval or licensing. Harsh penalties and even jail sentences are the consequences of patent law infringement. Individuals or organizations accused of breaching patent law suffer substantial financial losses as well. In my view, the patent law is okay. However, I believe that there is some form of misuse when an organization acquires patents to intentionally prevent individuals from pursuing innovations sharing similarities ( Stuckey, 2018 ).
Privacy Law
A lot of data and information flows through the internet from online businesses and individuals accessing internet resources. Privacy has become a significant issue recently where individuals have raised major concerns about data privacy. Privacy laws are centered on what type of information organizations are allowed to collect from their users and what the information may be used for. Recent cyber-attacks on major companies like Target, Home Depot, and eBay have less to massive data leaks where sensitive user details like credit card details and addresses as well as contact information were stolen by hackers. Therefore, privacy laws have been vague and are still under review to determine how best to protect consumers on the internet ( Bennett & Raab, 2017 ).
Most consumers of e-commerce platforms hardly ever read the privacy terms and conditions offered by the platforms they access. The blindly overlook these terms and quickly access the products they want without the slightest care of how the information they are willingly providing will be used. Some companies have been accused of selling user data for profit even to government agencies. Internet privacy laws are still not clear, and many individuals and organizations continue to get away with major crimes involving internet privacy. Much has to be done to solidify the internet privacy laws, and awareness has to be created for consumers to understand their role.
References
Becker. (1986). Whelan Associates Inc. v. Jaslow Dental Laboratory, Inc., et al. Retrieved March 10, 2007 from http://digital -lawonline.info/cases/230PQ481.htm.
Bennett, C. J., & Raab, C. D. (2017). The governance of privacy: Policy instruments in global perspective . Routledge.
Grimmelmann, J. (2016). Internet Law (p. 31). Oregon City, OR: Semaphore Press.
Stuckey, K. D. (2018). Internet and online law . Law Journal Press.
