The Ethical Impacts of ICT: Privacy of Information

Introduction


Hi, I'm Luca and I am a student in year 10 at St. Francis Xavier's College in Woolton, Liverpool. One of the subjects I am currently studying at school is ICT, and I am going to share my knowledge and understanding of this subject with everyone in a series of blogs. In this particular blog, I will be discussing the ethical impacts of ICT: privacy and information. I hope that you enjoy this blog, and come away learning something new which you can hopefully pass on to someone else.


What Sort of Information the DPA Keeps and what this Information is Used for


The DPA includes different pieces of information about people, such as:


Your beliefs (e.g. religion)


Your health (e.g. medical records)


Your money (e.g. bank balance)


Your education (e.g. exam results)


Your behaviour (e.g. speeding fine)


Your work (e.g. employment records)


An example of why the DPA may keep your beliefs is in a Catholic school, who only employ Catholic teachers, they may wish to know a particular new teacher's beliefs. 


They may also want to know that teacher's behaviour, and if that teacher has had any previous criminal convictions, then the police force would be informed about this. 


Another thing the school may want to know about the new teacher is their employment records, to see how much experience they have had in the past, and what kind of other jobs they have had. 


Health is another thing which the school may want to know, as if the teacher has any health issues, then the school would need to be informed about this immediately in case of any emergencies in the future. 


Finally, they may want to know about your education, to see whether the teacher is clever enough to teach a class of students.