Internet Access

While advancements in information technology (IT) have improved efficiency and produced a higher quality of life on a personal and business level, there have still been resulting increasing ethical issues related to it. The ethical issues that are important to society and businesses alike are privacy and protection of their personal information. For parents, privacy and protection go one step further when their children are involved. Access to inappropriate websites, and collection of information of children through the Internet has evolved so quickly, and because of the misuse by children and the potential and imposed threats on children, laws were implemented to protect children and give parents a sense of control. Two such acts to provide some protection are the Children’s Internet Protection Act, 2000 (CIPA) and Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), 1998.

Computer usage has become normal usage in our society. Even school’s offer and at times require it with research that can only be found on the Internet. In addition, with the advancements in the internet and social media it was found that children were having access to material visually and musically that were deemed age-inappropriate. Due to these findings Congress enacted The Children’s Internet Protection Act. According to the “Federal Communications Commission” (n.d.), “The Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) was enacted by Congress in 2000 to address concerns about children’s access to obscene or harmful content over the Internet.” (Children's Internet Protection Act) This act required schools and libraries that receive government funding and/or discounts have internet filters including pornography blocking software on their public computers. While some may feel this infringes on their freedoms, this act helps parents that want to monitor what their children see and hear have a sense of security when their children use computers in public places.

While parents have concerns...