Computing Ethics Policy Proposal

Throughout this semester, we have discussed a number of ethical issues while also examining the legal structures surrounding them. The goal of this assignment is for you to bring your knowledge together to develop a policy proposal for a technology-related controversy. As some examples, consider the following potential scenarios:

a state law enforcement agency accessing a private network of home surveillance recordings
a generative AI company building models of living musicians, allowing users to create new music "by" a favorite artist
a social media company removing non-consensual sexual imagery from user-generated content
a student copying the prompt of a homework assignment into a chatbot prompt and submitting the output as the student's intellectual work
a doctor's office giving patients access to a custom chatbot tool for quick symptom checking and triage
a hacktivist collective devoted to free access to publicly funded scientific research creating a public archive of paywalled articles
an online anonymous discussion forum dedicated to marginalized and taboo topics, including self-harm, cutting, eating disorders
a security research group creating tools that can be used to automate the detection of vulnerabilities and exploit generation

All submissions will be completed with a partner. If there are an odd number of students, a group of three is also acceptable. You should discuss all ideas and analyses verbally before writing anything, as the discussion may lead to different insights and views to consider.

Part One: Proposal and Positioning

Your first task is to select a topic, choose a perspective for crafting a policy, and to perform an initial stakeholder analysis. That is, after selecting a topic (you may choose from the above or craft your own), you need to explain who the policy is written by and for. For instance, in the case of the musical generative AI company, you may be creating a policy for (a) the company (aiming to create the tools ethically), (b) the artists (striving to limit the impact on their livelihoods), or (c) the users (allowing some imitative use but placing limitations).

After adopting a perspective, you will consider how this technology impacts the various stakeholders:

What stakeholders are involved and who might be affected beyond those immediately evident?
What ethical frameworks or principles from ethical codes are you considering? (Note that while the ACM Code is encouraged and likely helpful, you might research codes of ethics from other relevant professions, such as medicine or law.)
Which of your personal values are impacted and how do they bias your view of the issue?
What other perspectives will you need to address? How could someone else view the situation differently?

While you are not required to use it, the Proactive CARE for Computing Professionals approach offers additional questions that you may consider addressing.

You will submit a short (one-page maximum) PDF that contains your chosen topic, the context and perspective of your proposed policy, and the stakeholder analysis. This phase will be lightly graded as "Acceptable," "Needs Work," or "Not Acceptable." If your submission is not deemed "Acceptable," you will need to see me during office hours to consult. Even if your submission is "Acceptable," you are encouraged to consult with me for any advice.

Part Two: Policy Proposal

Your task is ultimately to craft a new policy proposal. As an example of what this would look like, consider the JMU Policy on Public Expression on Campus. While some parts of this policy are specific to the context of a state university, it illustrates the key elements that your submission needs to have. Specifically, your final submission must include:

Purpose: What is the context of this policy and why is it necessary? What are the goals and other factors that should be considered when applying the policy?
Definitions: What are key terms that you are using in a particular way and should not be misinterpreted? (For example, consider that the term "negligence" has a legal interpretation that is not the same as the casual use of the word.)
Applicability: What is the scope of this policy? Who does it apply to and (if relevant) where?
Policy: This is the main piece. What actions should be allowed? Prohibited? Required?
Procedures: If someone suspects that this policy has been violated, who is responsible for investigating this claim and how is the claim reported? Should anonymous reporting be allowed? What other requirements should there be?
Sanctions: What should be the response if a violation is demonstrated to have happened?

You may have additional sections (e.g., Authority, Responsibilities, Exceptions) if necessary and appropriate.

A couple things to consider as you are thinking about this policy:

What is moral and what is legal are not necessarily the same. This policy should strive to encode what is moral, while considering the limitations and restrictions that may be imposed by legal frameworks.
You may be familiar with the concept of proof "beyond a reasonable doubt." This is a level of evidence that is used on criminal proceedings where we put people in jail. Policy violations are most often evaluated based on a "preponderance of the evidence" (the violation is more likely to have occurred than not). That is, you do not need absolute proof that someone is guilty to hold them responsible.