Case Analysis on CSR Submission Link<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Who did the Equifax breach harm? How? Why was this harm morally bad?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Introduction<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sensitive data and personal information of millions of people were exposed in Equifax data breach back in 2017. This was a very serious breach because people had almost no control over whether their data enters the credit-reporting agencies or not. Lots of important things can be impacted by the credit reports such as Loans, housing, vehicles and even jobs. People feared the possible harm that breach could cause. They were scared that their personal information would be exposed and might be used by threat actors to cause identity theft. It was also possible that their bank details would be used to exploit them causing a financial loss. The breach could also expose the very private information of people which could ruin their reputation. Equifax faced a lot of backlashes from people because of its poor approach of response. During that time their website was not working, people were not able to reach them and when people did try to freeze their account to protect themselves from possible harm, Equifax charged them money. Lots of people that were not even Equifax customers were also affected by the breach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In this Case Analysis, I will argue, according to contractarianism the Equifax breach impacted their own customers and the people that were not by causing their private information to be exposed out Infront of public and causing them the risk of being exploited. This harm was morally bad because behind Rawls’s veil of ignorance, it was not a fair social contract.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Friedman and the Equifax Breach<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Milton Friedman, corporate executive is responsible for running the business ethically in a way that benefits its owner. Theres is nothing wrong with businesses making profit however they should follow the law along with Ethnic responsibility. Friedman doesn\u2019t agree that it is ok for businesses to operate with no morality, however he still believes that executives that run the business should not waste the company\u2019s resources for social cause as it cost the owner of the company. It is ok to make lots of money as long as companies are following the rules and operating ethnically is the main idea of Friedman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Equifax makes profit by collecting and processing people’s personal and financial information which connects with Friedmans idea. It is difficult for people to not use the credit reporting system. Credit reports are very important in people’s lives and can have a major impact on things like housing, loans, cars etc. Like any other business, Equifax has a duty towards its users to operate the business abiding by the law and ethics and protect the user\u2019s data. They are allowed to make as much money as they want out of the business, however that doesn\u2019t mean that they should neglect their responsibilities towards people that are using the service they provide. From Contractarianism\u2019s perspective, one of the laws that every business follows is the responsibility of protecting its user\u2019s information because Behind Rawls’s veil of ignorance, no one would know their position in society therefore they would want a society that is fair to everyone and extra considerate of those that are more vulnerable than others. In this case, no one would know if they would be the consumer that was affected by the data breach, or a very rich person with amazing credit score or someone with really bad credit score, the owner of Equifax or the executive therefore everyone would want a society that has a strong data protection law against scams, identity theft, financial loss, and damage of the reputation. The law that holds companies accountable for the user\u2019s data protection would also be supported. Those who suffer more consequences than others would be supported and protected by Rawls’s maximin principle. A fair system would hold companies responsible for the protection of the data of their users.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Companies should be responsible for the data they store. Equifax breach was more than a mistake; it was a failure to protect the people who have little to no control over their data that was stored by Equifax. It was their carelessness and failure to protect the people that trusted them with their private information. Equifax should have taken the cybersecurity problem serious enough to implement a better cybersecurity practice. They should have invested in cyber professionals to protect their data and monitor the system regularly. Even after the breach occurred, Equifax could have done better and shown more responsibility towards the victims of breach, they could have been transparent about the kind of information that were stolen, informed the people and made it easier to freeze the credit but instead they choose to charge people for somethings that was caused by them. For any business protecting the data of the people that are being stored should be the basic rules that they have to follow in order to run the business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Equifax is allowed to make profit, but they should also consider the interest of the victims. This doesn\u2019t challenge Friedman’s idea because this would be considered as the basic rules of running a company where companies protect the data they store. Through Contractarianism we can see this more clearly, if humas had no idea of their place in society, they would support credit reporting only in agreement that companies are held accountable for the information that are collected by them and are being protected with stronger privacy practice along with better approach of aftermath in case of breach, that compensate the victim fairly. That way it would create a fair society for everyone involved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Anshen and the Equifax Breach<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Melvin Anshen discusses a new way of looking at society and its relationship with business. He states that social contracts are not constant and are always changing. The expectation that people place on companies are renewed and negotiated with the time. Society place various expectation on people such as the responsibility of protecting the users, helping people that are vulnerable, and talking about environmental and social issues. The main priority of businesses is to make maximum amount of money which contradicts to these expectations of society however companies are still part of society so along with the time as society changes so will their standard and expectation. This connects with Equifax because it stores lots of sensitive information about people that can impact their lives in serious manner. Equifax\u2019s main purpose is to create credit reports, which is very important as those reports are for various important purposes in society. The company has major impact on society which leads to higher expectations as society changes. Its main goal cannot just be profit. Equifax is powerful because of the data they collect and store not only from its own customers but also others that need credit reports, so people are very interested in Equifax\u2019s ability to protect the data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Anshen’s perspective of constant change in social contract due to the changes in society and its institutions can be justified through Contractarianism. Through Rawls\u2019s veil of ignorance, it would be the decision of people in society on how the credit-reporting system runs within society if no one would have any idea of there place in the world, people might even allow businesses to store and collect the private data such as finance because it will make it convenient for everyone to take out loans and money without making it expensive and complicated however they would make sure that the system practice a strong cybersecurity to protect the system, as no one would know who will be affected in case of data breach exposing them to scams, threats, embarrassment, identity theft and many other risks which would create a more fairer society for everyone involved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is very unfair when there\u2019s no choice but to be a part of the system that is not even properly protecting the private information of people. credit-reporting system is one of the examples of how the system can feel like trap as demonstrated on The Equifax breach. According to Contractarianism, as long as people\u2019s data are safely protected and they are not expected to be responsible for the data that companies collect but failed to protect, causing people the risk of exploitation of their personal information, people would likely support credit reporting system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Equifax should have chosen a better way to respond to the breach. They made it difficult to even freeze by charging people money and not being reachable when they are the ones that failed their responsibility of protecting the data. Equifax made it even harder for those who were affected by the incident by putting more responsibility on the consumers when people barely even have any power over their information that Equifax stored and failed to protect. In perspective of Contractarianism, Equifax broke the social rules by making it unfair to many people and it is Equifax\u2019s basic duty to protect the data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Conclusion<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Overall, the Equifax breach affected millions of ordinary people. Their private and financial information was exposed, making them vulnerable to scams, identity theft and financial damage. They had no control over what happened to their information. Equifax should have done better job at protecting people\u2019s data instead of only focusing on the profit, they should have operated with the rules of society and ethnic responsibility according to Friedman. While Anshen believes that as society changes so will their expectation toward the companies, making money should not have been the only priority of Equifax. They impact on very essential decisions in society, so it is also Equifax\u2019s responsibility to maintain the expectations of society. These ideas can be connected through Contractarianism, Contractarianism ask will people choose a different system and rules for society if they don\u2019t know their position. If Equifax executives and owners didn\u2019t know their position in society, they would choose a system and regulation that is fair to the people affected by the breach because they could also be in victims\u2019 place in society. Companies would be required to take accountability and responsibility for the data they collect in a fair society.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Case Analysis on CSR Submission Link Who did the Equifax breach harm? How? Why was this harm morally bad? Introduction Sensitive data and personal information of millions of people were exposed in Equifax data breach back in 2017. This was a very serious breach because people had almost no control over whether their data enters… <\/p>\n