VJTI FY – Business English Writing Process Assignment Name: Tushar Mali Roll no: 201080015 Introduction: Engineering ethics is an important area of study for students in the field of information technology (IT). As IT professionals, students will be responsible for designing and developing technology that impacts people's lives in significant ways. This case study assignment is designed to help students develop their understanding of engineering ethics and to apply this understanding a real-world scenario. Case Study: You are a software engineer at a large tech company. Your team has been tasked with developing a new social media platform that will allow users to connect with friends and family and share content. The company has set aggressive deadlines for the project, and your team is under a lot of pressure to meet these deadlines. During a team meeting, one of your colleagues suggests that the company should use data mining techniques to analyze user data and target ads more effectively. Another colleague points out that this could be a violation of user privacy and that the company has a responsibility to protect user data. The team manager, however, dismisses these concerns and emphasizes the importance of meeting the project deadlines. Assignment: In a written report, address the following questions: 1. What ethical issues are involved in the scenario presented? Who are the stakeholders in this situation? 2. How might the team manager's emphasis on meeting project deadlines affect the ethical considerations involved in this scenario? 3. What are the potential consequences of using data mining techniques to analyze user data? How might this impact user privacy? 4. What ethical principles should guide the development of a social media platform? How can these principles be incorporated into the design and development process? 5. What steps should your team take to ensure that ethical considerations are taken into account in the development of this platform? Report on Ethics The scenario that is being given involves ethical considerations such user data abuse and privacy violations. The corporation, its staff, shareholders, users of the social media site, and society at large are all stakeholders in this case. In addition to making sure the platform is financially viable, the corporation has a duty to protect the privacy of its users. The team manager's emphasis on completing project deadlines may have an impact on the scenario's ethical issues by encouraging team members to put timelines ahead of user privacy protection. This may result in the adoption of unethical techniques like data mining, which may jeopardize user privacy and go against ethical standards. Using data mining techniques to examine user data may have negative effects, such as the exploitation of user data for financial benefit, invasion of user privacy, and potential harm to specific people or to society at large. As a result, people may stop using the site, there may be user losses, and there may be legal and regulatory implications. Respect for user privacy, openness, accountability, and responsibility are ethical ideals that ought to direct the creation of a social media platform. By creating privacy policies and procedures, giving users access to information about how their data is used, and ensuring that the platform is held accountable for any unethical activities committed, these principles can be incorporated into the design and development process. The team should place a high priority on user privacy and security throughout the design and development process to guarantee that ethical considerations are taken into account in the creation of this platform. This can involve putting in place strict privacy policies and procedures, guaranteeing the security of user data, and getting feedback from users and other stakeholders at various stages of the development process. Also, the team should own up to any unethical activities made and be open and honest about how consumer data is handled. The team should also think about the potential effects of its choices on society as a whole and solicit advice from ethical experts.
