The Impacts of Computing: Law, Ethics and the Environment · seed 1 · A4, ink-friendly. The answer key prints on its own page for grown-ups.

Who gains, who loses, what the law says

Computing · Computer Systems · ages 15-16
Name ______________________   Date ____________

  1. What is the full environmental cost of a smart speaker?

    • Making it, running it and throwing it away
    • Only the electricity it uses on your shelf
    • Only the wage of the shop assistant

  2. A clinic stores patient records. Which duty does the law place on it?

    • Selling records to any buyer that offers most
    • Keeping records secure and using them only for the agreed reason
    • Deleting every record after one week

  3. What is access control?

    • Deciding which people and devices may use each resource
    • Hiding inside a system for months unseen
    • Pricing a basket of goods each year

  4. A friend says an old phone costs nothing once bought. What are they missing?

    • The shop receipt fades over time
    • The mining, energy and waste behind making, running and binning it
    • The colour of the phone case

  5. A school feed recommends videos that quietly favour one group. What should you argue?

    • Only the benefits, since the system is useful
    • Only the harms, since any bias ends debate
    • Both sides: who gains, who loses, and what check would catch the bias

  6. Why must a firm keep defending stored data year after year?

    • Because passwords grow longer on their own
    • Because cameras need new lenses
    • Because intruders can hide inside systems for months

  7. Once a company locks its files, its legal duties over personal data are finished.

    Circle one:   True   False

  8. A queue tool helps doctors but sends one group to the back. Nobody intended it. What is the flaw?

    • The tool is useless and must be scrapped sight unseen
    • Small unchecked preferences piled into an unfair pattern nobody planned
    • The patients arrived in the wrong order
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Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

Who gains, who loses, what the law says W1-mt_veX-psjipc-s1

  1. Making it, running it and throwing it away · Mining, factory labour, server energy and e-waste all belong in the total.
  2. Keeping records secure and using them only for the agreed reason · Security plus agreed purpose is the core promise behind health privacy.
  3. Deciding which people and devices may use each resource · It turns a privacy promise into locked doors that actually hold.
  4. The mining, energy and waste behind making, running and binning it · The shelf price hides the making, the running and the disposal.
  5. Both sides: who gains, who loses, and what check would catch the bias · Useful systems can still harm, so both sides plus a check is the honest answer.
  6. Because intruders can hide inside systems for months · A hidden intruder defeats a lock that is fitted once and forgotten.
  7. False · Duties continue: control access, watch for intruders and adapt as rules change.
  8. Small unchecked preferences piled into an unfair pattern nobody planned · Harm without intent is still harm, and only a fairness check reveals it.
Worksheet · LightMySky