The first topic that I felt really gained some further and deeper understanding through this course was whistleblowing. When I first started to work in the module that discussed whistleblowing, I viewed the topic as something that is just used for attention. What I mean by this is that many times in my life I have seen cases of whistleblowers, and I only ever thought of them as some media story that had no real meaning. But as I worked through and began to fully understand just what whistleblowing is and why it is needed, my mind was opened to the realization that it is something that is extremely important to protect. I think that it is a topic that is, in today’s world, only going to be more and more prevalent in discussion. I think that the ethical implications associated with the question of telling secrets that were trusted to you, or otherwise, to the public in the name of their safety is one that will continue to be debated for a good while to come. A takeaway from this I think is to always place the general wellbeing of the majority over that of the few people who benefit from it not being public.

The second for me is privacy, and I think that overall, my stance on this topic has not changed much from when I started this class to now. I have always placed the privacy of myself and others as something that is of the highest priority. I think that it is right that everyone has their own privacy, with which to do as they please within the boundaries of the law. It is immoral for anyone to take that privacy away from people whether they know about it or not.  I think that the only real thing that has changed for me in this regard is the way that I think about privacy in an ethical sense now. Prior to this course I had only thought about privacy as something that is just always there, and something that is given to everyone regardless of who they are. But now I see the ethical considerations of this topic, and the questions that are posed about it. I think that the takeaway for this one is that I always want to respect everyone’s own privacy and not to infringe upon them in any way, even if it is asked of me.

Last for me would be cyberconflict. This topic is especially important for me, seeing as I am a cybersecurity major.  I think that prior to this course I saw this as something that is performed by two sides in a conflict, whatever that conflict may be. And while I do still view it as such, I now see the moral and ethical quandaries that are asked when this topic is discussed. It is eye-opening to think about all the unnecessary casualties that are involved with cyber attacks against a nation. I think that the crux of the issue is all dependent on why cyber warfare is done. This is an issue that will continue to persist as long as technology continues to advance, and that does not seem to be stopping any time soon. The takeaway for me here is that I want to evaluate any kind of operation that may be asked of me, and to weigh the consequences of going through with it or not.