10. The Boundaries of Cybersecurity: Ethics, Rights, and Laws 267 Table 10.3 United States Bill of Rights summary. The colonists were suspicious of governments and their tendency to abuse power and restrict freedoms. Therefore, the rights guaranteed by the Constitution exist to protect citizens from the government. For example, the First Amendment states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” These are impressive guarantees of freedom. Every prior form of government actively monitored these types of activities and cracked down on them the moment they were judged to be a threat to the government. Strictly speaking, Constitutional rights can only be violated by state actors and only apply to citizens. State actors are people acting under the authority of the government. However, these rights over time became the public conscience of the nation, and violations of them in most contexts is considered unethical if not illegal. Private organizations, as non-state actors, are not technically bound to uphold the rights outlined in the Bill of Rights, but they often do. Also, laws have been passed by Congress to criminalize certain violations of these rights even by non-state actors. The right to due process and the right to privacy are especially important for cybersecurity professionals because these rights are particularly vulnerable in cyberspace and require vigilance to protect.
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