As more and more computers come into our lives, the ethical issues surrounding their use are starting to rise above the parapet.

People are simply doing whatever they want with their technology and not paying heed to the consequences.

Nobody wants his or her private email examined by an unauthorised person, his or her computer attacked by a virus or his or her private life examined in detail by the malicious or merely inquisitive.

So what can be done?

The issue is not just security. We are capable of putting measures in place to stop the casual passer-by from peeking into our private computer files.

There are plenty of software products that will encrypt sensitive data and release it only to an authorised person.

Firewalls can be set up to help protect our systems from hacker attacks.

But nothing can prevent people from prying into the lives of others. Ethics are the issue.

Computers offer a powerful way to gather digital data on almost any subject or individual.

Virtually everyone has a "digital footprint" created when they fill in online forms, register for web site access and send email to newsgroups so hiding is a virtual impossibility.

But is it right to pry into the affairs of others just because you can?

There is no legal restriction on this kind of internet use, it is left up to the individual.

Is it fair to steal other people's web site designs and use them? How about the copy on a web site? Should people be allowed to use whatever text they find in any way they choose?

Ethically, these things are wrong but there is no power within the current legal system to prevent people from doing them.

The problem was recognised in the United States in the late Nineties, with former vice president Al Gore joining the clamour for federal legislation to prevent companies from collecting personal information from children who use internet web sites, chat rooms and email.

Virus attacks, too, are increasingly common. Most businesses have had to cope with the fall-out from such a problem and, if the attack is seen as deliberate, the culprit could face serious consequences in a court.

But what about those software writers who create viruses for fun and let them loose on the web?

There is very little ethical information technology education in our schools. Children are not taught to respect the intellectual property of others.

The national curriculum appears to have avoided the issue.

It is left to individuals to choose the path they take and there are very few road maps.

The Computer Ethics Institute, based in Palo Alto, California, has issued a set of ethical guidelines:

Don't use a computer to harm other people.

Don't interfere with other people's computer work.

Don't snoop around in other people's computer files.

Don't use a computer to steal.

Don't use a computer to bear false witness.

Don't copy or use proprietary software for which you have not paid.

Don't use other people's computer resources without authorisation or proper compensation.

Don't appropriate other people's intellectual output.

Think about the social consequences of the programme you are writing or the system you are designing.

Always use a computer in ways that ensure consideration and respect for your fellow humans.

If more people recognised the ethical implications of their actions and refrained from doing things that damaged other people the whole information technology world would be a much better place.

What a shame we don't have a miracle cure for human nature.