P4: Describe how the proposal conforms to meet all legal and regulatory requirements
Whilst making my app I need to make sure to take the necessary precautions against legal issues which could affect my website. One of the biggest issues which I may face is any violations of the copyright law. The copyright law essentially means that any assets made by a third party is protected if I were to use it for my own monetary gain. So in order not to violate the copyright law I will have to make sure that I don't use any assets, be it code or design, designed by other people. This way I make sure that I am not breaching the copyright law and it protects me from having any legal action taken against me or the app.
Another legal that I could face would regard the Data Protection Act. This legal act makes sure that everyone has the right for their private details to be kept securely and not be shared without permission. This issue would definitely concern me because users would have to sign up to use my app. The data that they provide me with would have be stored securely and protected because if it leaked I would be breaching the Data Protection Act and it would put my app in danger of being removed and me being sued. In order to make sure that I do not violate the Data Protection Act I will need to make sure that any data that I store is encrypted and non accessible to the public. I would also need to use a secure socket layer server to store the data because this is an extra layer of protection which would stop hackers from accessing the data.
I will also need to make sure that my app doesn't violate the libel law which means that my app shouldn't offend or slander anyone. This law is applicable to me as my app will have an element of social media which will allow people to post comments and pictures which could defame people. If we don't control this we could be violating libel law and this would get us in legal trouble. In order to avoid this I plan to regulate the content posted on the app. Through this we can make sure to censor any inappropriate comments or any images that may cause offence or defamation. I will also make sure that when advertising on social media, my app doesn't post any content to promote itself that may also cause offence. I think it would be far worse if something that would defame someone was posted under the apps name because it would also give the app a bad reputation not just the people that use it.
Another legal that I could face would regard the Data Protection Act. This legal act makes sure that everyone has the right for their private details to be kept securely and not be shared without permission. This issue would definitely concern me because users would have to sign up to use my app. The data that they provide me with would have be stored securely and protected because if it leaked I would be breaching the Data Protection Act and it would put my app in danger of being removed and me being sued. In order to make sure that I do not violate the Data Protection Act I will need to make sure that any data that I store is encrypted and non accessible to the public. I would also need to use a secure socket layer server to store the data because this is an extra layer of protection which would stop hackers from accessing the data.
I will also need to make sure that my app doesn't violate the libel law which means that my app shouldn't offend or slander anyone. This law is applicable to me as my app will have an element of social media which will allow people to post comments and pictures which could defame people. If we don't control this we could be violating libel law and this would get us in legal trouble. In order to avoid this I plan to regulate the content posted on the app. Through this we can make sure to censor any inappropriate comments or any images that may cause offence or defamation. I will also make sure that when advertising on social media, my app doesn't post any content to promote itself that may also cause offence. I think it would be far worse if something that would defame someone was posted under the apps name because it would also give the app a bad reputation not just the people that use it.
P5: Assess the ethical, social and moral impact your proposal could have on stakeholders.
I think that the main ethical issue for me is that the app will allow people to post images of themselves and leave comments on other peoples images. This poses the threat of cyberbullying. I think that our target audience will be especially vulnerable because the age range is quite broad so the younger people on the app can be bullied and the app can get a lot of bad press for this and the stakeholders would not like that and could cut the funding for the app. In order to prevent this I will implement a feature where users are able to report abusive behaviour which will then be looked at by an employee who will decide whether or not the content is abusive, I think this way we will be able to protect our most vulnerable users.
Another issue which we may come across could link to vulnerable groups using my app and coming across inappropriate or harmful content. I think that this could be a real threat as young people like children and teenagers are very impressionable and need to be protected from harmful content in order to prevent them from copying what they see or imitating any dangerous behaviour. This has been a growing issue on platforms like Instagram, where there have been various accounts promoting eating disorders. In order to avoid these sort of issues I will create a code of conduct and a terms and conditions in which any harmful content or dangerous behaviour and improper use of the app will result in the user being banned. I will also implement this with the, before mentioned, flag system where users are able to report harmful content.
Lastly, I think that the issue of misrepresentation could also effect my app if there are certain groups or minorities within my app that are not represented enough or represented in an offensive manner. I think this would apply to me as I am creating a fashion app so inherently I will need images of models and if they're misrepresented then I may face ethical issues. In order to prevent this from happening I will need to make sure that I use models of various genders and ethnic groups in order to not only reach the widest audience possible, but also effectively represented as many social groups as I can. I also need to be careful to not have any minority group models in any racially suggestive poses as this may cause offence to our audience and it could also be looked down upon by our investors who are essential to the project as they will be funding it.
Another issue which we may come across could link to vulnerable groups using my app and coming across inappropriate or harmful content. I think that this could be a real threat as young people like children and teenagers are very impressionable and need to be protected from harmful content in order to prevent them from copying what they see or imitating any dangerous behaviour. This has been a growing issue on platforms like Instagram, where there have been various accounts promoting eating disorders. In order to avoid these sort of issues I will create a code of conduct and a terms and conditions in which any harmful content or dangerous behaviour and improper use of the app will result in the user being banned. I will also implement this with the, before mentioned, flag system where users are able to report harmful content.
Lastly, I think that the issue of misrepresentation could also effect my app if there are certain groups or minorities within my app that are not represented enough or represented in an offensive manner. I think this would apply to me as I am creating a fashion app so inherently I will need images of models and if they're misrepresented then I may face ethical issues. In order to prevent this from happening I will need to make sure that I use models of various genders and ethnic groups in order to not only reach the widest audience possible, but also effectively represented as many social groups as I can. I also need to be careful to not have any minority group models in any racially suggestive poses as this may cause offence to our audience and it could also be looked down upon by our investors who are essential to the project as they will be funding it.