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AQA 7517 · Paper 2 · 4.8.1

Ethics &
Legislation

DPA 2018 · CDPA 1988 · CMA 1990 · Ethical issues · Section 4.8

WHAT YOU'LL LEARN
Data Protection Act 2018 · Copyright law · Computer Misuse Act · Ethical issues in computing
AQA SPEC LINK
4.8.1 — Moral, ethical, legal, cultural, and environmental concerns
Data Protection Act 2018

DPA 2018 — UK GDPR

The Data Protection Act 2018 (incorporating UK GDPR) regulates how organisations collect, store, and use personal data. Key principles:
Lawfulness — must have a lawful basis to process personal data
Purpose limitation — collected for specified, explicit purposes only
Data minimisation — collect only what is necessary
Accuracy — kept up to date; Storage limitation — not kept longer than necessary
Integrity and confidentiality — kept secure; Accountability — data controller responsible
Rights Under DPA

Individual Rights Under DPA 2018

Right of access — individuals can request a copy of their personal data (Subject Access Request)
Right to erasure ("right to be forgotten") — can request data be deleted
Right to rectification — can correct inaccurate data
Right to object — can object to processing for certain purposes (e.g. marketing)
ICO (Information Commissioner's Office) — UK regulator; can fine organisations up to £17.5m or 4% of global turnover
Computer Misuse Act 1990

Computer Misuse Act 1990

The CMA 1990 makes it illegal to access or modify computer systems without authorisation. Three main offences:
Section 1
Unauthorised access to computer material (e.g. guessing passwords, hacking). Up to 2 years.
Section 2
Unauthorised access with intent to commit a further offence (e.g. breaking in to steal data). Up to 5 years.
Section 3
Unauthorised modification of computer material (e.g. deploying malware, ransomware, deleting data). Up to 10 years.
Copyright Act 1988

Copyright, Designs & Patents Act 1988

The CDPA 1988 gives creators automatic legal protection for original works. In computing, this covers software, music, films, books, games, and websites.
Software copyright — illegal to copy, distribute, modify without licence
Music/film piracy — downloading without paying violates copyright
Lasts 70 years after author's death (for most works)
Creative Commons licences allow controlled sharing while retaining some rights
Ethical Issues

Ethical Issues in Computing

Privacy — surveillance capitalism; tech companies collecting personal data for profit; smart devices always listening
AI bias — facial recognition systems discriminating; biased training data producing unfair decisions in hiring/lending/policing
Digital divide — gap between those with/without technology access; exacerbates social inequality
Environmental impact — e-waste; data centre energy consumption; carbon footprint of cloud computing
Automation & jobs — AI replacing workers; moral obligation to retrain displaced workers
Intellectual Property

Software Licensing

Proprietary/commercial — source code closed; must buy licence; e.g. Microsoft Office, Adobe Photoshop
Freeware — free to use but source code not open; can't modify or redistribute
Open source — source code available; can modify/distribute under conditions of the licence (GPL, MIT, Apache)
Shareware — free trial; pay to unlock full version
End User Licence Agreement (EULA) — legal contract between software company and user
Social Issues

Computing & Society

Cybercrime
Online fraud, identity theft, ransomware attacks on hospitals, phishing campaigns — computing enables crime at global scale
Social Media & Mental Health
Algorithms designed for engagement can amplify harmful content; addiction by design; cyberbullying; filter bubbles
Surveillance
CCTV, facial recognition in public spaces, employer monitoring of remote workers — balance between safety and privacy
AQA Exam Style

Practice Question

AQA 7517 — Paper 2 Style
(a) A company stores customer email addresses and purchases to send targeted adverts. State TWO principles of the Data Protection Act 2018 that apply to this data. [2]
(b) A hacker logs into a corporate network without permission and reads confidential files but makes no changes. State which section of the CMA 1990 is broken and explain why. [2]
(c) Describe ONE ethical issue raised by AI decision-making in criminal sentencing. [2]
[6 marks]
2 marks
(a) Any 2 of: data must be processed lawfully [1]; purpose limitation — only used for specified purposes, not other purposes [1]; data minimisation — should only collect what is needed [1]
2 marks
(b) Section 1 — unauthorised access to computer material [1]. The hacker accessed the network without permission; no authorisation was given to read those files [1]
2 marks
(c) AI trained on biased historical data may discriminate against certain groups [1]; decisions are opaque (black box) and defendants cannot challenge the reasoning, violating the right to a fair trial [1]
Summary

Key Points to Remember

DPA 2018 — 7 principles; rights include access, erasure, rectification; enforced by ICO
CMA 1990 — S1: unauthorised access; S2: access + intent; S3: unauthorised modification (malware)
CDPA 1988 — protects software, music, film, books automatically; 70 years after death
Ethical issues — privacy, AI bias, digital divide, e-waste, job displacement, surveillance
Software licences: proprietary, open source, freeware, shareware — know the differences
🎉 Lesson complete — move to the quiz!