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Floridi’s ontological theory of informational privacy: Some implications and challenges

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Abstract

This essay critically analyzes Luciano Floridi’s ontological theory of informational privacy. Organized into two main parts, Part I examines some key foundational components of Floridi’s privacy theory and it considers some of the ways in which his framework purports to be superior to alternative theories of informational privacy. Part II poses two specific challenges for Floridi’s theory of informational privacy, arguing that an adequate privacy theory should be able to: (i) differentiate informational privacy from other kinds of privacy, including psychological privacy; and (ii) distinguish between descriptive and normative aspects of informational privacy in a way that differentiates a (mere) loss of privacy from a violation of privacy. I argue that Floridi’s privacy theory, in its present form, does not explicitly address either challenge. However, I also argue that his ontological theory provides us with a novel way of analyzing the impact that digital technologies have had for informational privacy. I conclude by suggesting that Floridi’s privacy framework can be interpreted as containing the elements of a “personality theory of privacy,” which would be useful to examine in a separate study.

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Abbreviations

2P2Q:

Processing, pace, quality and quantity

CE:

Computer ethics

ICTs:

Information and communications technologies

IE:

Information ethics

RALC:

Restricted access/limited control theory of privacy

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Acknowledgements

An earlier version of this essay was presented at the Seventh International Conference on Computer Ethics – Philosophical Enquiry (CEPE 2007) at the University of San Diego, July 11, 2007 (and printed in the CEPE 2007 Conference Proceedings). I am grateful for some helpful comments that I received from the conference participants. And I am especially grateful to Lloyd Carr, Charles Ess, Fran Grodzinsky, and Ken Himma for the excellent suggestions they provided on an earlier draft of this essay.

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Tavani, H.T. Floridi’s ontological theory of informational privacy: Some implications and challenges. Ethics Inf Technol 10, 155–166 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10676-008-9154-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10676-008-9154-x

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