What Do You Get When You Google Ethics?
ZACH RABUN
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“One who asks a question is a fool for five minutes; one who does
not ask a question remains a fool forever.”1
The most direct path to
knowledge is asking questions, but what if the answers were subjective
and affected by outside influences. This is the problem many people are
experiencing with the online world today. Internet search engines are the
most widely used and popular method for finding quick answers to any
question. All internet search engines are fundamentally the same.
Unique algorithms, internet search engines shuffle through billions of
websites and bring the most relevant (ideally) websites to its search
results page. It is when these results are tampered with in order to
increase profit margins that ethical issues arise.
Users of Google, an online search engine (with many other
attributes), expect quick answers and assume companies online are
accountable without any true knowledge. “If you've never Googled, you
probably aren't finding what you want online.” Google operates the
leading Internet search engine, offering targeted search results from more
than 8 billion Web pages. The site, which ranks results based on a proprietary algorithm, offers search results in more than 35 languages and
attracts a daily audience of more than 380 million people worldwide. The
company generates revenue through ads that are targeted by keywords.
Google also sells ads across a network of more than 200,000 affiliated Websites.
2 There are lots of data mining software programs used to track
every click and word entered online, which can rapidly create a vivid
picture of an individual’s lifestyle. Google even admits to collecting as
much information about its users as possible in order to best serve its
users. Google uses this data to customize search results. Google begins
to face ethical dilemmas when it alters search results in order to better
sell advertisement space and result locations.
Approximately, 80% of young adults (15-25 year olds) 3 use Google
at least once a week. With such a broad scope of users and massive
influence Google has on instant search results/answers, Google needs to
be monitored more closely because it is ever expanding and privacy
becomes more fragile with every new user. Personal information
collected is then used to customize search results to bring up websites
that fit the searchers profile. Part of the algorithm Google uses to find
search results include a history of pages visited before the search. For
example, if someone had visited a handful of anti-Semitic websites before
entering the word Jew into a Google search, a higher percentage of the
results would include anti-Semitic material. This is a breach in ethics
because Google has a duty to present the truth. Too many people rely
upon Google and other search engines for answers for them to change
the search results just so the user can have better access to the websites
where Google sells ad space. Information should not be tampered with
regardless of personal preference. Google can be credited with educating
a huge population every day, and with this huge responsibility comes huge ethical implications. Such an abuse of privacy is unethical and does
not “best protect and respect the moral rights of those affected.” 4
Everyone has a right to the same knowledge, and tampering with results
is unethical because Google, and other search engines, are assuming they
know what you want more than you do.
Introduction to Google
Google was created in 1998 by two college students at Stanford
University. The students realized that a search engine that looked at the
content of a web page rather than the number of times a keyword
appeared on the page would produce more accurate results. They were
right, currently, Google commands “more than 60% of all searches that
are performed on the internet use Google and it brings in roughly 75% of
all search ad revenue.” 5 Using a secret algorithm, Google sorts through
billions of sites on the internet to bring the most popular and most
referenced pages to the user according to the keywords entered by the
user. However, there are many more services provided by Google and
many subsidiaries that are either owned or in cooperation with Google.
Services like G-mail, Google Earth, Google Scholar, Google Group, Google
Map, YouTube, WebMD, etc. provide everything from e-mail to medical
information. Google's mission statement is, "to organize the world's
information and make it universally accessible and useful." 6 However, it is
Google’s methods of storing massive amounts of consumer information in
order to customize results to better sell ad spaces that has led many to
question its ethics. This is advantageous in many ways but compromises
the “Rights Approach” to ethics. Users are no longer privilege to “the
truth, to not be injured, and to a degree of privacy” 7 Internet search
engines are a window through which knowledge can be gained, but when
information is hand selected, users lose their free will to choose what
information they have access to.
Privacy
The definition of privacy has changed many times, and the realm
of what is considered to be private is blurred. There is nothing in the
Constitution or the Bill of Rights that states there is a clear right to
privacy, but the courts have established through the 1st
, 3rd
, 4th
, and 5th
Amendments that every US citizen has a right to privacy. There seem to
be several types of privacy concerns; privacy of beliefs (1st Amendment),
privacy of the home against demands that it be used to house soldiers
(3rd Amendment), privacy of the person and possessions as against
unreasonable searches (4th Amendment), and the 5th Amendment's
privilege against self-incrimination, which provides protection for the
privacy of personal information. The 5th
Amendments right to privacy of
personal information is the most relevant in Google’s case.
The internet has greatly changed the rules and perceptions of
privacy. Google is first and foremost a search engine. Google records and
tracks every search by its users through the use of tracking cookies. While
you can turn cookies off, most people do not because there is some data
that people want to be remembered. Unfortunately there is no way for
cookies to distinguish which data should be collected and which data
should not be collected according to the user. A cookie is a file that the
website sends to your computer on which it stores data while you use the
site. 8 Cookies can be very useful and allow a company to understand a
consumer’s tendencies and preferences. However this is a violation of the “Rights Approach” to ethics because the “ability to choose freely what to
do with one’s life…and make one's own choices about what kind of life to
lead, to be told the truth, not to be injured, and to a degree of privacy” 9 is
forfeited because users are no longer able to choose what sites are
presented to them or what information they have access to. Knowledge
is a very powerful tool and should not be tampered with, especially on
such a large scale.
Every time someone clicks on something or enters any
information into the internet there is a potential it is being recorded and
stored. Google keeps records of all searches and lots of other data in
order to create profiles for its users. Google can then match these
profiles with appropriate advertising and lead it’s users towards the most
relevant products. This is a circumvention of individual’s rights because it
does not allow them to choose freely.
Services such as G-mail, Google’s email service, has the ability to
scan emails sent and received by its users for keywords. These keywords
are then match with products and advertisements then made available to
the user. Adsense is the program Google uses to advertise. Although
Adsense is not reading everyone’s emails, it is still an invasion of
informational privacy because private information like diseases or
criminal acts could be discovered within emails. This becomes a problem
when this information isn’t kept contained within Google. Google states
that it will only share your information with “trusted businesses.” This is
very subjective and the consumer has no say in whom the “trusted
businesses” are and what information is fair and relevant to be shared
with each business. Recently, Yahoo (Google’s largest competitor) was
found guilty of leaking information to the Chinese government that led to
the arrest of a pro-democracy activist “after Yahoo gave Chinese authorities information about his e-mail account, his computer address,
his log-on history and the contents of several weeks of his e-mail.” 10
While this is an extreme example of the possible ethical implications of
data gathering done by Google and other online search engines and how
it could hurt consumers, it is easy to see how detailed each profile can be
made and how little control users have over what information is shared
and with whom.
Implications
With the many arms of Google, there is little information that
can’t be found after enough use by consumers. Using G-mail, Google can
understand what you are talking about with friends, coworkers, family,
etc. Using Google maps, Google can see where you travel and possibly
live. Using Froogle, Google can understand what kind of products you use
and shop for. Using Google scholar, Google can understand what topics
interest you. Using Google groups, Google can see what kind of social
activities in which you’re involved. Using Google Earth, Google can have a
real life picture of your house, car, neighborhood, etc. The list goes on
and on. It is easy to see how quickly Google can create a very detailed
profile for its user and how valuable that profile then becomes to all sorts
of companies and services.
Google has also recently started on several new projects to
expand their online influence. The first of their new initiatives is the
acquisition of the online advertising company DoubleClick. “Opponents
say owning DoubleClick will give Google too much control over online
advertising, and in particular the user data collected and stored on
Google's massive computers…As the number of Web sites where people spend their time has grown, online ad giants have acquired ad networks
to expand the number of users they can monitor and the number of sites
on which they can place ads.” 11 With the acquisition of DoubleClick,
Google’s dominance of search and access to the advertisers and sites that
work with DoubleClick would enable the company to become a "pipeline"
through which most of the Web's relevant data would flow. The reason,
they argued, is that Google's ability to reach the majority of U.S. Web
surfers on the most highly trafficked Web sites would be so great that
advertisers would be forced to work with the company.” 12 Again this all
comes back to the violation of the “Rights Approach” to ethics because
Google is foregoing people’s rights to informational privacy. Google is
chalked full of advertisements and offers. That is how Google made it’s
more than ten billion dollars in 2006. 13 This ignores people’s right to
privacy and information ethics because Google is using people private
information, primarily without their knowledge for the most part, and
guiding them towards sites, advertisements, and promotions which
Google decides is most appropriate and relevant. When Google uses
personal information and has a bias towards websites where it sells ad
space to report search results, people’s right to information and
knowledge is tampered with. All of this is done without the consumer’s
knowledge or right to “choose freely…and make one's own choices.”
And finally, Google has shown interest in purchasing the social
networking site Facebook. “Facebook is a popular social networking
website which has been expanding rapidly since it opened membership to
the general public.” 14 This would also expand Google’s audience and
reach of influence. Facebook contains an enormous amount of private
data. While much of Facebook is a public network, many people have
taken strides to keep their information private by blocking people from
seeing their webpage unless previously approved. Information such as
birth date, schools attended, jobs, friends, pictures, conversations, home
addresses, telephone numbers, etc. can be found on an individual’s
Facebook page. This is very private information and if leaked could lead
to identity theft and unfair treatment based on incriminating content.;
Reasoning
The reason people do not view Google business conducts as a violation of
privacy is because they do not understand what is being recorded and
tracked and the possible implications of such data aggregation. Google
very clearly posts its privacy policies on its website. However, the policies
are vague and leave room for many questionable uses of personal data.
The burden of care lies in the hands of the consumer and not with Google
or other online companies. Google views its data collection as the best
means of understanding and serving its customers. Therefore consumers
must be careful what information they give out and to whom they give it.
Many people do not think they are creating an accurate profile because
most of the information is spread out over many website and over a long
period of time. However, computers do not forget and many websites are
owned by few companies and it is easy to gather loads of information
originating from the same IP address.
Google also has a very positive reaction with the general public.
Google was named one of the best companies to work for in 2007 by Fortune
500 magazine. They hire only the smartest and best equipped people and
treat them very well. All of this has led to a warm reception by the public.
Google’s ideals of “do no evil” 15 that can be found in their mission statements
and codes of conduct are usually well adhered to. Unfortunately, as Google and similar companies continue to grow and absorb other companies, their
responsibility and ethical foundations become uncontrollable. With dozens
of subsidiaries and millions of people using Google every day, it is impossible
to monitor everything and unethical actions will be taken and privacy
breached.
Conclusion
Google has become enormously successful because of their ability
to stay ahead of the curve and provide the most cutting edge technology
to the general public. However, in doing so, Google has violated the
Rights Approach to Ethics because its users are losing their ability to make
their own decisions and control their own privacy. As Google continues to
grow and expand its audience and realm of influence, there needs to be
someone responsible for the privacy of its users. Google’s privacy policy
is too loosely worded to truly be applied to any certain situation and
leaves a lot of loopholes in which to act unethically. Consumers therefore
must take control of their privacy and understand what information they
are giving out and who is receiving it, especially if they want objective
search results/access to knowledge. There is a lot of potential for all of
Google’s services to do good in the world, unfortunately there is an equal
amount of potential for abuse.
Works Cited
1. Brin, David. (2006). David Brin Quotes. Retrieved February 10, 2007,
from http://thinkexist.com/quotation/when-it-comes-to-privacy-and-
accountability/1273163.html
2. (2007). Google Corporate Information: Company Overview. Google.
Retrieved February 10, 2007, from http://www.google.com/corporate/
3. Ibid 2
4. Velasquez, Manuel; Moberg, Dennis; Meyer, Michael J.; Shanks,
Thomas; McLean, Margaret R.; DeCosse, David; André, Claire; and
Hanson, Kirk O. (1988). A Framework For Thinking Ethically. Retrieved
February 10, 2007 from
http://www.scu.edu/ethics/practicing/decision/framework.html.
5. Holahan, Catherine. (2007, September 28). Google Defends the
DoubleClick Deal. Business Week Online. Retrieved October 1, 2007 from
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/sep2007/tc200709
27_271085.htm
6. Ibid 2
7. Ibid 4
8. H. T. Tavani. (2007). Ethics and Technology 2nd ed. Hoboken, New
Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.
9. Ibid 4
10. 6. A.P. (2007, October 16). Yahoo accused of misleading Congress
about Chinese Journalist. CNN. Retrieved October 16, 2007, from
http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/10/16/yahoo.congress/index.html
11. Ibid 5
12. Ibid 5
13. Worrall, Jonathan. (2007, September). The North America IT and High
Technology Sectors. Retrieved on February 10, 2007, from
http://webreports.mergent.com
14. Premium Member Login required, author provided:
http://premium.hoovers.com/subscribe/co/factsheet.xhtml?ID=hsrfrfjfsf
tcry
15. Ibid 2