An Analysis of Emerging Ethical and Human Rights Issues in the Harvesting of Data from Social Media During Emergency Response to Natural Hazards

Abstract

This research investigates the ethical and human rights implications of social media powered emergency management information systems that harvest and process data from social media streams in order to produce actionable information to help inform emergency response to natural disaster. The methodological approach adopted is qualitative, and it uses a value disclosive analysis to investigate the value impacts of the existing (and potential) functionalities of a representative system (Sl?nd?il). The values analysed are respectively; life, privacy, justice, trust, and responsibility and accountability.

The analysis is anchored in a dual theoretical framework consisting of the macroethical theory, Information Ethics, and the constitutional theory, Fiduciary Theory. Utilising Information Ethics provides the conceptual resources to analyse the precise risks of this emerging information and communication technology, whereas competing theories such as deontology and consequentialism struggle to address the nuances of technologies with remote and distant implications for relevant stakeholders. Fiduciary Theory underpins the legal analysis, outlining the limits of state authority and indicating justifiable or prohibited uses of such systems as they relate to human rights.

The research argues numerous potential value impacts. Such systems as that under study have the capacity to either support or undermine the analysed values. It is argued that a primary benefit of such systems is that they can support the value of life by conjoining the knowledge and power of emergency managers and social media users to help them avert instances of the tragedy of the Good Will. It is also acknowledged that they can support improper uses of personal data, thereby adversely implicating privacy; that by enhancing the accessibility of social media data (where such services are used predominately by society's more privileged) it can result in discrimination driven by incomplete information; that the potential for function creep and the presence of rumour on social media can undermine trust-qualified relations between the relevant stakeholders; and that responsibility and accountability can be challenged in complex networks where fault can be difficult to discern, or blame is actively avoided.

Whilst technology can undermine values though, these challenges can also potentially be overcome using technological mechanisms, including automated credibility assessment of social media data, as just one example; or the integration of a plurality of socio-economic data into such systems that can then be weighed against social media data.

This research provides guidelines for the design and deployment of Sl?nd?il-type systems that is both ethical, and respects human rights. A primary theme of which is that they should be designed to mitigate against adverse value impacts, and deployed only as necessity dictates.