Abstract
Social networks such as Facebook raise numerous ethical issues, many related to privacy. We mean to dispute the common claims that social networks intrinsically diminish privacy on the Internet. Although social networks are part of a trend in which privacy is traded away in favor of publicity and community involvement, Facebook gives users more control over what is and is not publicly available in comparison to other parts of the Internet. Facebook is an improvement over personal websites and search results where information cannot easily be limited.
Social networks are also an improvement in that they provide users with the ability to target specific types of people with information and causes they wish to promote. Facebook also prevents users from spreading malicious content, such as support for hate groups or offensive photos or comments. Thus, the consolidation of information into centralized social networks makes the Internet a more positive experience overall.
Unfortunately, many users are ignorant of Facebook's privacy controls and fail to take advantage of them. These failures raise ethical concerns: for example, current or potential employers being able to discover compromising information posted about you via social networks. We argue that, as long as employers continue to gather information legally and without deception, social networks do not raise fundamentally new ethical concerns. Responsibility lies with the users to limit what information they make available to other users. Although we believe that Facebook and other social networks should better educate their users about privacy controls, and make their default settings more restrictive, ultimately mature users should be allowed the responsibility to make informed decisions about what content appears associated with their names.