AI systems reflecting human biases in their training data
Facial recognition misidentifying people of colour
Digital divide
Unequal access to technology between groups
Rural areas with poor internet access
Job displacement
Automation replacing human workers
Self-checkout machines replacing cashiers
Data ownership
Who owns the data generated by users?
Tech companies profiting from user data
Legal Issues
Laws exist to regulate how technology and data are used, protecting individuals and organisations from harm.
Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA) / UK GDPR
Controls how personal data is collected, stored, and used. Key principles:
Data must be used lawfully, fairly and transparently
Collected for a specific purpose — not used for other purposes
Must be adequate, relevant and minimal (no more than necessary)
Must be accurate and kept up to date
Individuals have the right to access their own data
Data must be stored securely
Computer Misuse Act 1990
Makes it illegal to:
Unauthorised access to computer material (e.g. hacking) — up to 2 years in prison
Unauthorised access with intent to commit further offences (e.g. accessing a system to commit fraud)
Unauthorised modification of computer material (e.g. deleting files, installing malware) — up to 10 years in prison
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
Protects creative works (software, music, images, videos) from being copied or distributed without permission. Gives creators exclusive rights to their work for their lifetime plus 70 years.
Extending device lifespan — repair rather than replace
Cloud computing — shared infrastructure is more energy efficient than individual servers
Virtualisation — running multiple virtual machines on one physical server
Buying energy-efficient hardware (look for energy star ratings)
Exam tip: Edexcel questions often ask you to discuss or evaluate — giving both positives AND negatives (balanced arguments). Know specific law names and dates: DPA 2018, Computer Misuse Act 1990, Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988.
⚠️ Common Mistakes
Confusing ethical issues (moral debates) with legal issues (laws that exist)
Getting the law names wrong — the Computer Misuse Act is 1990, not 1998
Not knowing the three specific offences in the Computer Misuse Act
Forgetting that e-waste is an environmental issue caused by computing
Mixing up privacy (ethical) with data protection law (legal)
Q1State two ethical issues that arise from the widespread use of computing technology.[2]
✅ Mark scheme
Any two from: privacy [1]; surveillance [1]; bias in AI systems [1]; digital divide [1]; job displacement/automation [1]; data ownership [1].
Q2State three offences under the Computer Misuse Act 1990.[3]
✅ Mark scheme
Unauthorised access to computer material (hacking) [1]; unauthorised access with intent to commit further offences [1]; unauthorised modification of computer material (e.g. deleting files, installing malware) [1].
Q3State two principles of the Data Protection Act 2018 that organisations must follow.[2]
✅ Mark scheme
Any two from: data must be used lawfully, fairly and transparently [1]; collected for a specific purpose [1]; must be adequate, relevant and minimal [1]; must be accurate and up to date [1]; individuals have the right to access their own data [1]; stored securely [1].
Q4Explain what is meant by the 'digital divide'. Give one example.[2]
✅ Mark scheme
The digital divide is the gap in access to technology between different groups of people [1]; e.g. rural communities may have poor broadband access compared to urban areas / developing countries have less internet access than wealthy nations [1].
Q5Describe two environmental impacts of computing.[4]
✅ Mark scheme
Energy consumption: data centres and devices consume large amounts of electricity [1]; this contributes to carbon emissions and climate change [1]; E-waste: old/discarded devices contain toxic materials like lead and mercury [1]; these can pollute landfill sites and harm ecosystems [1]. (Other valid impacts: water usage for cooling, mining rare metals.)
Q6Explain how the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 protects software developers.[2]
✅ Mark scheme
The Act protects creative works including software from being copied or distributed without the developer's permission [1]; giving them exclusive rights to their work and preventing others from profiting from it without a licence [1].
Q7Discuss the ethical concerns around AI bias. Include what causes it and one impact.[3]
✅ Mark scheme
AI systems learn from training data which may contain human biases [1]; if the data is unrepresentative of diverse populations, the AI will reflect those biases [1]; e.g. facial recognition software performing less accurately on people of colour, leading to unfair or discriminatory outcomes [1].
Q8Describe two ways organisations can reduce the environmental impact of their computing infrastructure.[4]
✅ Mark scheme
Use renewable energy (solar/wind) to power data centres [1]; reducing carbon emissions from electricity consumption [1]; virtualisation — running multiple virtual servers on one physical machine [1]; reduces the number of physical servers needed, cutting energy use and hardware waste [1]. (Other valid: e-recycling programmes, cloud computing, energy-efficient hardware.)
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Mini Test — Ethical, Legal & Environmental Issues
Timed exam-style test.
⏱10:00
Section A — Multiple Choice [5 marks]
Q1The Computer Misuse Act 1990 makes which of the following illegal?[1]
Q2Which law protects the rights of software developers from having their programs copied?[1]
Q3E-waste refers to:[1]
Q4Which of the following is an ethical issue (not a legal issue) related to computing?[1]
Q5One sustainable computing practice is:[1]
Section B — Short Answer
Q6Describe the three offences created by the Computer Misuse Act 1990 and the maximum penalty for each.[3]
Mark schemeOffence 1: Unauthorised access to computer material (hacking) [1] — up to 2 years in prison [1]; Offence 2: Unauthorised access with intent to commit further offences (e.g. fraud) [1] — up to 5 years [1]; Offence 3: Unauthorised modification of computer material (deleting files/installing malware) [1] — up to 10 years [1].
Q7Explain the difference between an ethical issue and a legal issue in computing. Give one example of each.[2]
Mark schemeA legal issue involves breaking the law and can result in prosecution/punishment [1]; example: hacking into a system (Computer Misuse Act) [1]; an ethical issue is a moral question about what is right or wrong, but may not be illegal [1]; example: companies selling user data for profit, surveillance of employees [1].