WGU D333 Ethics in Technology Questions
and Answers (2026/2027) | Updated
Review | A+ Verified
• Normative statement -✓✓provides an assessment of how things should be rather than
how they are: for example, "he was wrong to do that" or "being kind is more important
than being the most successful."
• Moral imagination -✓✓Imagination that forms dealing with the morality of problems in
media and in real life.
• the Hippocratic Oath -✓✓requires medical professionals to "use treatment to help the
sick according to my ability and judgment, but never with a view to injury and wrong-
doing"
• Habitus -✓✓the qualities of character that they have and the patterns of living that
issue from and reveal those qualities. That pattern of being is called a habitus.
• Deontology -✓✓Most notably, deontology emphasizes the rightness or wrongness of
an action by reference to certain action-guiding principles. Depending on the context,
these principles can be described as laws, rules, maxims, imperatives, or commands.
• Kantian Ethics -✓✓The notion that the universe is ordered by laws that can be
apprehended by human reason
• VIRTUE ETHICS -✓✓is an approach to ethics organized around the idea of human
flourishing and human excellence. Its basic assumption is that all human beings share
some basic qualities of character, though we vary widely in how much we excel at those
qualities and how we express them, and each of us gets better (or worse) at them
according to our experiences.
• Communitarianism -✓✓is an approach to ethics organized around self-realization in
the context of interdependence. Its basic assumption is that human beings exist in a
state of mutual reliance on one another.
• Utilitarianism/Consequentialism -✓✓is an approach to ethics organized around the
idea of happiness. Like virtue ethics, utilitarianism is an outcome-based approach to
ethics that assumes that human beings are motivated by the desire to be happy.
Building on the basic assumption that humans are motivated by happiness, utilitarians
argue that when it comes to determining how we should act, we should first and
foremost consider what kinds of actions bring about the most happiness for the greatest
number of people.
,• Profession -✓✓A profession has a core body of theoretical knowledge, this work
requires a combination of practical skill and knowledge. Has its own code of ethics and
culture.
• Conflict of interest -✓✓A conflict of interest is a situation in which a professional is
serving multiple parties (possibly including the professional themself) and acting in the
interest of one party may harm another.
• Licensing -✓✓requirements in order to practice the profession.
• Certification -✓✓are not legally mandated like licenses but likewise serve as markers
of confidence and may be expected or preferred by employers.
• What are the core characteristics of a profession? -✓✓-Profession has a core body of
theoretical knowledge.
-specialized knowledge gives professionals authority.
-a professional has clients
-a profession gives special and often unique privileges by the community.
-a profession regulates itself with a code of ethics.
• Preventive Ethics -✓✓rules and guidelines that govern behavior and are aimed at
preventing cases of professional misconduct and particular disasters
• Aspirational Ethics -✓✓aimed at using technology for the betterment of humankind
• How does the IEEE Code of Ethics address the issue of discrimination? -✓✓IEEE 8:
"To treat fairly all persons and to not engage in acts of discrimination based on race,
religion, gender, disability, age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, or
gender expression."
• What is the SECEPP, and what is its purpose? -✓✓Software Engineering Code of
Ethics and Professional Practice - finer-grained subclauses of ethics.
• zero-day exploit -✓✓A cyberattack that takes place before the security community
and/or software developers become aware of and fix a security vulnerability.
• What is it called when a threat combines various types of exploits and vulnerabilities in
one payload? -✓✓Blended Threat
• In states where it is legal to spam, what are the usual requirements? -✓✓-Spammers
cannot disguise their identity by using a false return address
-the email must include a label specifying that it is an ad or solicitation
-the email must include a way for recipients to indicate they do not want future mass
mailings.
, • APT -✓✓A network attack in which an intruder gains access to a network and stays
there—undetected—with the intention of stealing data over a long period of time (weeks
or even months).
• Rootkit -✓✓An attack in which a malicious hacker takes over computers via the
Internet and causes them to flood a target site with demands for data and other small
tasks.
• Botnet -✓✓An attack in which a malicious hacker takes over computers via the
Internet and causes them to flood a target site with demands for data and other small
tasks.
• the large federal agency with a budget of almost $65 billion whose goal is to provide
for a "safer, more secure America, which is resilient against terrorism and other
potential threats." -✓✓Department of Homeland Security
• Computer Fraud and Abuse Act -✓✓Address fraud and related activities in
association with computers including access, transmission, password trafficking, and
threats
• Fraud and Related Activity in Connection with Access Devices Statute -✓✓Covers
false claims regarding unauthorized use of credit cards.
• Stored Wire and Electronic Communications and Transactional Records Access
Statutes -✓✓Focuses on unlawful access to stored communications to obtain, alter, or
prevent unauthorized access to electronic communication while it is in electronic
storage.
• USA Patriot Act -✓✓Defines cyberterrorism and associated penalties.
• What are the three components of the CIA triad -✓✓-ensuring confidentiality
-maintaining integrity
-guaranteeing the availability of systems and data.
• Describe a layered solution that can help prevent or minimize an attack. -✓✓In a
layered solution, if an attacker breaks through one layer of security, another layer must
then be overcome.
• Risk-Assessment -✓✓The process of assessing security-related risks to an
organization's computers and networks from both internal and external threats.
• Reasonable Assurance -✓✓A concept in computer security that recognizes that
managers must use their judgment to ensure that the cost of control does not exceed
the system's benefits or the risks involved.
and Answers (2026/2027) | Updated
Review | A+ Verified
• Normative statement -✓✓provides an assessment of how things should be rather than
how they are: for example, "he was wrong to do that" or "being kind is more important
than being the most successful."
• Moral imagination -✓✓Imagination that forms dealing with the morality of problems in
media and in real life.
• the Hippocratic Oath -✓✓requires medical professionals to "use treatment to help the
sick according to my ability and judgment, but never with a view to injury and wrong-
doing"
• Habitus -✓✓the qualities of character that they have and the patterns of living that
issue from and reveal those qualities. That pattern of being is called a habitus.
• Deontology -✓✓Most notably, deontology emphasizes the rightness or wrongness of
an action by reference to certain action-guiding principles. Depending on the context,
these principles can be described as laws, rules, maxims, imperatives, or commands.
• Kantian Ethics -✓✓The notion that the universe is ordered by laws that can be
apprehended by human reason
• VIRTUE ETHICS -✓✓is an approach to ethics organized around the idea of human
flourishing and human excellence. Its basic assumption is that all human beings share
some basic qualities of character, though we vary widely in how much we excel at those
qualities and how we express them, and each of us gets better (or worse) at them
according to our experiences.
• Communitarianism -✓✓is an approach to ethics organized around self-realization in
the context of interdependence. Its basic assumption is that human beings exist in a
state of mutual reliance on one another.
• Utilitarianism/Consequentialism -✓✓is an approach to ethics organized around the
idea of happiness. Like virtue ethics, utilitarianism is an outcome-based approach to
ethics that assumes that human beings are motivated by the desire to be happy.
Building on the basic assumption that humans are motivated by happiness, utilitarians
argue that when it comes to determining how we should act, we should first and
foremost consider what kinds of actions bring about the most happiness for the greatest
number of people.
,• Profession -✓✓A profession has a core body of theoretical knowledge, this work
requires a combination of practical skill and knowledge. Has its own code of ethics and
culture.
• Conflict of interest -✓✓A conflict of interest is a situation in which a professional is
serving multiple parties (possibly including the professional themself) and acting in the
interest of one party may harm another.
• Licensing -✓✓requirements in order to practice the profession.
• Certification -✓✓are not legally mandated like licenses but likewise serve as markers
of confidence and may be expected or preferred by employers.
• What are the core characteristics of a profession? -✓✓-Profession has a core body of
theoretical knowledge.
-specialized knowledge gives professionals authority.
-a professional has clients
-a profession gives special and often unique privileges by the community.
-a profession regulates itself with a code of ethics.
• Preventive Ethics -✓✓rules and guidelines that govern behavior and are aimed at
preventing cases of professional misconduct and particular disasters
• Aspirational Ethics -✓✓aimed at using technology for the betterment of humankind
• How does the IEEE Code of Ethics address the issue of discrimination? -✓✓IEEE 8:
"To treat fairly all persons and to not engage in acts of discrimination based on race,
religion, gender, disability, age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, or
gender expression."
• What is the SECEPP, and what is its purpose? -✓✓Software Engineering Code of
Ethics and Professional Practice - finer-grained subclauses of ethics.
• zero-day exploit -✓✓A cyberattack that takes place before the security community
and/or software developers become aware of and fix a security vulnerability.
• What is it called when a threat combines various types of exploits and vulnerabilities in
one payload? -✓✓Blended Threat
• In states where it is legal to spam, what are the usual requirements? -✓✓-Spammers
cannot disguise their identity by using a false return address
-the email must include a label specifying that it is an ad or solicitation
-the email must include a way for recipients to indicate they do not want future mass
mailings.
, • APT -✓✓A network attack in which an intruder gains access to a network and stays
there—undetected—with the intention of stealing data over a long period of time (weeks
or even months).
• Rootkit -✓✓An attack in which a malicious hacker takes over computers via the
Internet and causes them to flood a target site with demands for data and other small
tasks.
• Botnet -✓✓An attack in which a malicious hacker takes over computers via the
Internet and causes them to flood a target site with demands for data and other small
tasks.
• the large federal agency with a budget of almost $65 billion whose goal is to provide
for a "safer, more secure America, which is resilient against terrorism and other
potential threats." -✓✓Department of Homeland Security
• Computer Fraud and Abuse Act -✓✓Address fraud and related activities in
association with computers including access, transmission, password trafficking, and
threats
• Fraud and Related Activity in Connection with Access Devices Statute -✓✓Covers
false claims regarding unauthorized use of credit cards.
• Stored Wire and Electronic Communications and Transactional Records Access
Statutes -✓✓Focuses on unlawful access to stored communications to obtain, alter, or
prevent unauthorized access to electronic communication while it is in electronic
storage.
• USA Patriot Act -✓✓Defines cyberterrorism and associated penalties.
• What are the three components of the CIA triad -✓✓-ensuring confidentiality
-maintaining integrity
-guaranteeing the availability of systems and data.
• Describe a layered solution that can help prevent or minimize an attack. -✓✓In a
layered solution, if an attacker breaks through one layer of security, another layer must
then be overcome.
• Risk-Assessment -✓✓The process of assessing security-related risks to an
organization's computers and networks from both internal and external threats.
• Reasonable Assurance -✓✓A concept in computer security that recognizes that
managers must use their judgment to ensure that the cost of control does not exceed
the system's benefits or the risks involved.
