Legal Concerns with Information Exchange
* Lesson 5 - COMPUTER ETHICS 5.3 - LEGAL CONCERNS WITH
INFORMATION EXCHANGE [1] Legal Concerns with Information
Exchange

With the extensive use of the Internet, there is potential for you to get
involved in illegal and unethical activities, such as gambling and
defamation. You need to be aware and cautious of these illegal and
unethical issues. Also, remember that these issues vary from country to
country, and even within parts of a country. The following table explains
some unethical and illegal uses of information exchange. Scroll down to
read each description.

Defaming someone's reputation

When you communicate with others by using e-mail, chat, or online public
forums, be careful not to make any statements that may result in defamation
of someone. Defamation means making false statements about a person that
can negatively affect the person's reputation. For example, suppose you
post a message on an online forum falsely stating that your neighbor, who
is a celebrity, owns illegal property. This can be considered as defamation
because you are spreading false information that may harm your neighbor's
credibility.

NOTE

A false statement can be considered defamatory, even if it is not
derogatory. Sometimes, even true statements can be considered as defamatory
if the statements harm someone