Ethics in the Use of Information: Edward Snowden Leak

ITT-415 Data Ethics
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ITT-415 as 8 Data Ethics
Edward Snowden's leak on massive surveillance by the US government was one of the major whistleblowing in US history. In his whistleblowing, Snowden, the then IT expert at the National Security Agency (NSA), exposed the government of carrying out an illegal surveillance program, collecting the phone records of tens of millions of Americans to spy on US citizens and global leaders, contrary to the data protection act (Bellaby, 2018). Snowden's action raised ethical concerns, with many arguing that it was unethical to reveal classified information about the country's top security agency, while others believing that he did the right thing by exposing suspicious activities in the US government. A similar concern is directed to the CIA and other organizations. Ethically, the CIA and other government security agencies are ethically justified to collect data on these citizens. This is to intensify the security in the country.
The US has experienced multiple terrorism threats and attacks, with events of the 9/11 attacks fresh in everyone's mind. After the 9/11 attacks, there was a need to heighten national security, including secretly collecting and monitoring citizens' data to identify any potential threat (Bellaby, 2018). Identifying security vulnerabilities and addressing them helps prevent any attack that may affect the country and its citizens. In other words, the mass surveillance by the US government would have prevented terrorist threats and attacks, strengthening security in the US and other regions. Therefore, from a utilitarian perspective, collecting data on citizens would help establish peace and create happiness in the country and other parts of the world.
Whether Snowden was a whistleblower or a traitor also raises debate, although the US gov...