Is Monitoring Software Morally Wrong?

Monitoring Software lets you do a variety of activities with regard to the Internet. Typically monitoring software allows you to monitor user behavior and choices while surfing the Internet. In addition to this, it also helps you gather what might be considered as personal or sensitive information such as user names or passwords. Most monitoring software is deployed as an executable that collects the above information while the user browses the Internet.

There is a moral and an ethical angle to monitoring software. Some argue that monitoring one’s browsing and other Internet activity is clearly an infringement on the personal rights of the individual, while some others argue that collecting personal information such as passwords and other sensitive information exposes one to great risk. While their arguments may not be entirely wrong, it is worthwhile to consider the benefits offered by monitoring software as well.

A classical example in this regard is the parental control that can be exercised over children’s browsing activity. Without the help of monitoring software, it is virtually impossible to control the browsing activity of children. This exposes them to the risk of visiting websites with inappropriate content, not suitable for viewing at their age. It can also control members of one’s family from spending or rather wasting time on useless activities such as chatting for an unlimited time for leisure, unbridled watching of movies and entertainment stuff etc. Here, monitoring software can act as a preventive measure.

Then, how about employees whiling away the precious time and resources of their company when they are paid exorbitantly to do their work? What would be a viable proposition to this case? It would make more sense to use monitoring software to track and clamp down such irresponsible and unproductive activities.

The need to use monitoring software changes its role from being a preventive measure to a necessary measure when it comes to businesses that deal with sensitive data. For example, let us consider the case of a Business Processing Outsourcing unit of a bank that has to obviously deal with sensitive client data. Instances and experiences have proved that the risk of such data being misused by the employees of such firms will be much higher if proper measures are not in place. It could lead to people simply carrying away data in their removable devices or mailing such information to outside parties who may not require that.

In government organizations that deal with classified information, monitoring software becomes inevitable to prevent information leak. This is more serious than any other form of theft. In fact, in most of the developed countries, this is a very serious crime that could portray a person as even being a traitor. This carries grave risk not only to the person, but also to the nation’s security. The entire governmental system could be jeopardized due to such activities. Though it may not be able completely stop such incidents, monitoring software can act as a deterrent. The sense that someone is watching their activities will always at the back of every employee’s mind.

So on the whole, it would be grossly unfair to put all eggs in the same basket and call all types of monitoring software as unethical. There could be a few that might belong to that category but their disadvantages are easily overshadowed by the advantages of the good ones.