The Ethics of Surveillance in Times of Emergency draws from the use of modern surveillance technologies during the COVID-19 pandemic to explore a set of issues and challenges facing decision-makers and designers in times of emergency: how do we respond to emergencies in ways that are both consistent with democratic and community principles, and that are ethically justifiable? Emergencies, like public health pandemics, not only place stress on existing infrastructure and communities, but put significant pressure on our decision-making. The use of surveillance technologies during public health crises is a vital frame to explore the challenge of acting in times of emergency. Moreover, as an exercise in reflective applied ethics, this book does not just seek to apply a given theory or principle to the problem of surveillance in times of emergency, but to use the challenges facing us to critically engage with, reflect upon, and develop those theories and principles. The book's authors recognize this challenge--is it possible to respond to exceptional conditions in ways that either preserve our core values, or must these core values be subsumed under the need to respond to the particular emergency? The book offers responses to this challenge by looking at three interrelated ways in which can manifest: first, the democratic challenges; second, the ethical challenges; and third the design challenges faced in developing ethical solutions.
Author(s): Kevin Macnish, Adam Henschke
Series: Engaging Philosophy Series
Edition: 1
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Year: 2023
Language: English
Commentary: TruePDF | Full TOC
Pages: 232
Tags: Social & Political Philosophy; Electronic Surveillance: Moral And ethical Aspects; Emergency; Management: Moral And Ethical Aspects
Cover
Half Title
Series Title
Title
Copyright
Contents
Acknowledgement
List of Contributors
Introduction
Democracy in Times of Emergency
Ethics in Times of Emergency
Ethics by Design in Surveillance Programmes
References
Part I: Democracy in Times of Emergency
1: Pandemic Population Surveillance: Privacy and Life-Saving
The Case of South Korea
Test, Track, and Trace in the UK
An Architecture of Oppression?
Conclusion
References
2: No States of Exception: A Neo-Republican Theory of Just Emergency Powers
A Neo-Republican Conception of Emergency
The Roman Dictatorship
A Neo-Republican Account of Just Emergency Powers
Conclusion
References
3: Combating Covid-19: Surveillance, Autonomy, and Collective Responsibility
Technology Responses to the Pandemic
Ethical Analysis
Privacy and Autonomy
Collective Responsibility
Conclusion
References
4: Big Data as Tracking Technology and Problems of the Group and Its Members
Use of Big Data Analytics to Target Persons or Groups
Key Ethical Issues
Ethical Concerns Raised by the Targeting of a Person as a Member of a Group
Consent
Social Justice and Fairness
Privacy
Ethical Concerns Raised by Targeting a Group Qua Group
Current Measures to Address the Identified Issues
Protecting Persons against Harms
Protecting Groups against Harms
Group Rights to Privacy
Conclusion and Recommendations to Improve Current Measures
References
5: Epistemic Dimensions of Surveillance in Public Health Emergencies: Risks of Epistemic Injustice and Dysfunctions of Trust
Introduction
Some Features of Public Health Emergencies, and Their Implications for Knowledge
Testimonial Injustice and Testimonial Smothering in Public Health Emergencies
Trust, Fairness, and Knowledge in Public Health Emergencies
Conclusion
References
Part II: Ethics in Times of Emergency
6: Surveillance without ‘Baddies’: Liability and Consent in Non-Antagonistic Surveillance Ethics
Liability of (Potential) Infection Bearers
Consent of Liable Bearers of Infectious Diseases and Tracing Apps
Why Consent Might Matter Morally, Despite Liability
Conclusion
References
7: Digital Contact Tracing Applications (DCTAs): Public Health Ethics and Emergency Surveillance
Introduction
DCTAs: A Look at How the Technology Works and Approach Taken to Implement Their Use
How DCTAs Work
Approaches Taken in Using DCTAs
In Support of DCTAs
Early Detection
DCTAs Indirectly Contribute to Reducing Lockdowns and Burden on Healthcare System
DCTAs, Autonomy, and Informed Consent
A Bioethics Approach
A Public Health Ethics Approach
Conclusion
References
8: Surveillance, Democracy, and Protest in a Time of Climate Crisis
The Ethics of Police Surveillance of Protest: Privacy and the Chilling Effect
Police Surveillance of Protest Movements: Tactics and Practices
Overt Surveillance during Protests and Assemblies and Immediately before and after Them
Surveillance of Non-Protest Gatherings: Meetings, Camps, Workshops, Etc.
Undercover Policing: Infiltration
Conceptualizing the Impact of Surveillance on Protest Mobilization: The Limits of the ‘Chilling Effect’
References
9: The Dynamics of Public Health Ethics: Covid-19 and Surveillance as Justifiable but Abnormal
Covid-19 Driving New Surveillance Practices
Public Health Ethics Normalizing New Surveillance
Public Health Ethics as Dynamic
Ensuring That Surveillance Remains Abnormal
References
Part III: Ethics by Design in Surveillance Programmes
10: Ethical Requirements for Digital Systems for Contact Tracing in Pandemics: A Solution to the Contextual Limits of Ethical Guidelines
Introduction
Morley et al.’s Guidelines
My Proposed Guidelines
How to Protect against Contextual Change
Conclusion
References
11: An Unexceptional Theory of Morally Proportional Surveillance in Exceptional Circumstances
The Qualitative Difference View of Proportional Surveillance in Exceptional Circumstances
Against the Qualitative Difference View
An Unexceptional Theory of Proportional Surveillance
Conclusion
References
12: Technofixing Surveillance: A Proportionate Response?
Proportionality
Efficacy of Technology
Harms of Apps
Alternatives
Conclusion
References
Index
