The storing of data and information of individuals has many issues. In this entry I will be talking about four ethical issues that arise when storing electronic information about individuals. The first issue is ownership, who has the right to access, use, or control this information can be ethical conflicting for companies and agencies. Generally, ownership can be broken down into two categories: personal information, name, address, health records and the like are to be considered private and subject to ethical protection. Individuals have the right to control how their personal information is collected, used, and disclosed, and organizations have an obligation to respect these rights. The second is intellectual property, patents, trademarks, and copyrights, is a type of property that is created through human effort, such as writing a book or inventing a product. The ownership of intellectual property raises ethical issues related to the protection of creative works and the distribution of the benefits of innovation.

The second issue is transparency, informing individuals about what information is being stored and how and why that information is being used and collected is an important ethical problem. Clear explanations must be made about data collected and storage practices as well as the right to review and control the information stored. This includes giving individuals the ability to access to their own information, allowing them to review and control it, and giving them the opportunity to correct inaccuracies. The third issue, security, protecting the information from cyber-attacks, theft, or loss raises ethical concerns. From an ethical standpoint, security is an important principle because it helps to prevent the abuse of sensitive information, such as personal data or confidential business information. When individuals and organizations take steps to secure information, they demonstrate a commitment to protecting the rights and interests of others and promote trust in the information-sharing process. The fourth issue, privacy, concerns protection of personal privacy and the potential for unauthorized access, use, or dissemination of sensitive information. Privacy is an important issue because it recognizes that individuals have a right to control their personal information and to limit the collection, use, and disclosure of that information.