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6.3 ethIcs And cloud computIng
The previous section introduced ethics and some guiding principles for
conducting an ethical analysis according to three prominent ethical
approaches. This section reviews existing literature describing ethical concerns related to cloud computing. De Bruin and Floridi (2017) refer to
the environment, governments, investors, private and business cloud
users, and individuals and corporations interacting with private and business users, as key stakeholders of the cloud computing industry. The literature examined in this section addresses the ethical issues faced by the cloud
computing industry when dealing with this complex multi-stakeholder
context. The three areas reviewed concern data and the perspective of
both providers and users.
6.3.1
The Ethics of Data in Cloud Computing
If Aristotle, Bentham or Kant were alive today, they would probably study
the manner in which human beings deal with the vast amounts of data
currently collected, stored and managed via the cloud. Each would likely
promote a different perspective in relation to the best way of dealing with
data ethics. Herschel and Miori conducted such an exercise and effectively
analysed the ethics pertaining to data according to selected perspectives,
including Virtue Ethics, Deontological Ethics and Utilitarianism (Herschel
and Miori 2017). They highlight how, from a Kantian perspective, the lack
of consent for the collection and use of data would be a clear violation of
autonomy, and contrary to Kant’s understanding of human beings always
as ends in themselves, never as means. They also argue that, from a
Utilitarian perspective, the analysis of the ethics of data would be very difficult to perform. They assert that it would be particularly difficult to calculate in a unitary way all the pros and cons of the use of data, and of the
ultimate beneficiaries of data usage. In relation to the perspective of Virtue
Ethics, this task does not seem to be any easier, given that a Virtue Ethicsbased ethical analysis would need to consider how a virtuous person could
make the best possible use of data while becoming the best version of
themselves.
It would seem that the task of a comprehensive ethical analysis using
prominent ethical approaches is particularly difficult, to the point that
“data ethics” is now constituting itself as a new branch of applied ethics
(Floridi and Taddeo 2016), which is developing its own language and
6 ETHICS AND CLOUD COMPUTING
6.3 ethIcs And cloud computIng
The previous section introduced ethics and some guiding principles for
conducting an ethical analysis according to three prominent ethical
approaches. This section reviews existing literature describing ethical concerns related to cloud computing. De Bruin and Floridi (2017) refer to
the environment, governments, investors, private and business cloud
users, and individuals and corporations interacting with private and business users, as key stakeholders of the cloud computing industry. The literature examined in this section addresses the ethical issues faced by the cloud
computing industry when dealing with this complex multi-stakeholder
context. The three areas reviewed concern data and the perspective of
both providers and users.
6.3.1
The Ethics of Data in Cloud Computing
If Aristotle, Bentham or Kant were alive today, they would probably study
the manner in which human beings deal with the vast amounts of data
currently collected, stored and managed via the cloud. Each would likely
promote a different perspective in relation to the best way of dealing with
data ethics. Herschel and Miori conducted such an exercise and effectively
analysed the ethics pertaining to data according to selected perspectives,
including Virtue Ethics, Deontological Ethics and Utilitarianism (Herschel
and Miori 2017). They highlight how, from a Kantian perspective, the lack
of consent for the collection and use of data would be a clear violation of
autonomy, and contrary to Kant’s understanding of human beings always
as ends in themselves, never as means. They also argue that, from a
Utilitarian perspective, the analysis of the ethics of data would be very difficult to perform. They assert that it would be particularly difficult to calculate in a unitary way all the pros and cons of the use of data, and of the
ultimate beneficiaries of data usage. In relation to the perspective of Virtue
Ethics, this task does not seem to be any easier, given that a Virtue Ethicsbased ethical analysis would need to consider how a virtuous person could
make the best possible use of data while becoming the best version of
themselves.
It would seem that the task of a comprehensive ethical analysis using
prominent ethical approaches is particularly difficult, to the point that
“data ethics” is now constituting itself as a new branch of applied ethics
(Floridi and Taddeo 2016), which is developing its own language and
6 ETHICS AND CLOUD COMPUTING