Analysis of the Situation (DET)

Conduct an ethical analysis of the case study of Telstra by implementing doing ethics technique.

The use of technology has increased between organisations, and they rely on them to provide products and services to their customers. While using these technologies, companies perform various business functions such as marketing, selling, promoting, manufacturing and others. In order to provide effective and efficient customer service experience, corporations implement information and communication technology (ICT) (Sarkar, 2012). Due to these services, corporations are able to offer high-quality customer service experience to its users. Use of technologies in the business enables enterprises to find new solutions for business problems and implement new and creative solutions for addressing such issues. It also reduces the operating costs of a company by making business processes more efficient and effective. However, there are many disadvantages faced by corporations while using modern technologies in their operations. One of the most common threats face by enterprises is cyber-attacks; the number of cyber-attack on business has grown rapidly along with the use of technologies (Uma and Padmavathi, 2013). These attacks pose a significant threat to the privacy of companies along with their customers. This report will evaluate the case study of Telstra by using doing ethics technique (DET). Furthermore, the role of IT governance will be discussed along with the technologies used by Telstra in the company. Recommendations for improving the cybersecurity will be included in the report, and a conclusion will be drawn based on the analysis.

In order to evaluate ethical issues raised in a case, the doing ethics technique (DET) can be used which evaluate the case by asking few simple questions. Based on the answers given in each question, the ethical issues can be analysed by parties in a particular scenario. The doing ethics technique focuses on evaluating a particular scenario from an ethical perspective rather than finding the best solution for the ethical problems raised in the scenario (Lekakas, Vlachos and Koritos, 2014).

What’s going on?

In this report, the case study of Telstra will be analysed. It is an Australia based telecommunication corporation. The company was founded in 1975, and it is the largest enterprise in Australia telecommunication industry (Telstra, 2018a). The corporation has gained a competitive advantage in the industry by being the fastest network in the country. Other than Australia, the operations of the company are situated in more than 20 countries across the globe. The enterprise has become the largest telecom organisations in Australia by adopting digital technologies to perform its business functions. The senior level executives of the company understand the importance of digital disruptions, and they leverage the modern technologies to perform their business functions. In 2010, the corporation adopted a digital structure to provide better customer service experience to its members (Carter-Steel et al., 2017). The main purpose of this digital disruption was to ensure that the customers are able to resolve their queries as quickly as they can increases brand loyalty. Telstra has introduced its 24/7 mobile application which provides in-house services to its customers. Based on this application, the customers are able to get access to their data, and they can easily manage their services through this application. Furthermore, the corporation introduced a crowdsupport platform for its members where they can post their queries and instantly get a solution for the issues face by them (Telstra, 2017). These services provide substantial success to the enterprise based on which it expanded its market share. However, it also increased the risk of privacy breach and security of data of the enterprise because cybercriminals can hack the online servers of the company.

What’s going on?

Following are the facts provided in the case study.

• In order to improve its customer services, Telstra introduced a 24/7 mobile application which can be used by its members from the comfort of their homes.
• The corporation also introduced a crowdsupport platform where people can post their queries, and they easily get solutions for such issues (Telstra, 2018b).
• The company received success in the market due to these services, and it became one of the largest telecom enterprises in Australia.
• While using these services, the threat of cyber-attacks and hacking of people and company’s private data has increased.
• It has become easier for cybercriminals to access the confidential files of the company by hacking into their servers.

Following are a number of issues which raised in this case study.

• The purpose of the company to introduce 24/7 mobile application and a crowdsupport platform is to offer better and efficient customer service experience to its customers.
• However, it increased the threat of cyber-attacks on the servers of the company. It has provided a platform for cybercriminals where they can access and breach the privacy of customers of Telstra.
• In case of crowdsupport platform, a large number of private data is stored on the platform of the company which resulted in increasing the threat of data breach and cyber security.
• Phishing emails are the primary way of cyber-attacks, and over one-third of Australian businesses have experienced its attack (Gallo, 2017).

Telstra Corporation

The purpose of adaptation of digital technology in the business is to provide a competitive advantage in the industry. The goal of the company is to provide high quality and efficient customer service experience to its members. By relying on these technologies, customers can easily manage their account and resolve their queries from the comfort of their homes (Morley, 2017). The company is also able to provide a faster network connection to its customers by using digital technologies. Another objective of the company is to reduce its operating costs by relying on digital technologies. By using these technologies, the enterprise is able to maintain a low operating expense which resulted in increasing its profitability. However, implementation of these technologies has increased the vulnerability of data breach in the company. Cybercriminals can hack into the servers of the company and access their confidential data; they can also collect and harvest the private data of customers who use the digital technologies of the company (Redrup, 2018). Therefore, along with advantages, there are many risks associated with the implementation of digital technologies as well.

Customers of Telstra

The implementation of these technologies has improved the customer service experience of the members of Telstra. They are able to manage their services and resolve their queries by using the digital-based services of the company. The corporation has made the process of customer service experience efficient and reliable. However, the use of digital technologies has increased the risk of cyber-attacks and data breaches. The customers who use the mobile application and crowdsupport platform are vulnerable to cyber-attacks. Cybercriminals can hack into their data and collect their private data which breached their privacy. For example, in 2014, Telstra was filed by the court after breaching the privacy of over 15,775 customers which was being available online (ABC, 2014).

Hackers

It becomes easier for cybercriminals to hack into the servers of Telstra and collect the confidential data regarding the company and its customers. The adaptation of a digital structure has made it easier for cybercriminals to breach the privacy of Telstra’s customers. A recent report on cyber-attacks published by Telstra provided that over 59 percent Asian organisations face a business interrupting focused towards breaching their data at least once a month (Moon, 2018). Thus, the risks associated with adaptation of a digital structure are substantial which affects the interest of Telstra and its customers.

What are the facts?

What are the ethical issues and implications?

• Consequence-based (Utilitarianism): As per this theory, an action is ethical if its consequences bring happiness to a large number of people. It did not judge a situation based on rightness or wrong of the actions; it judges based on the consequences of the actions. The actions of Telstra are not wrong, and they are focused towards achieving the common goals of the organisation by fulfilling requirements of customers and increasing the profits of the company. However, its consequences resulted in a breach of privacy of its users which can have a negative effect on their security.
• Duty-based (Deontology): As per this theory, the morality of a situation is judged based on the rightness or wrongness of actions rather than their consequences. Ethically, the intention of Telstra is rights, and they are taking appropriate actions to protect the security of its customers. In July 2017, the corporation introduced two new cybersecurity centres which manage the security of the corporation (Reichert, 2017). Furthermore, the implication of a digital structure resulted in improving the customer service experience which is beneficial for the members of Telstra.
• Contract-based (Contractarianism): This theory focuses on the legitimacy of the actions in order to determine whether a situation is ethical or not. The actions of Telstra are legal, and the company is focused towards improving its cybersecurity to protect the interest of its customers. Thus, the actions of Telstra are ethical because they are focused towards fulfilling the interest of the company and its customers.
• Character-based (Virtue): As per this theory, a situation is judged based on the honesty of the character. The objective of Telstra is to improve it customer service experience by adopting a digital structure. The company is also taking precautionary measures for protecting the privacy of its customers.
• There is a significant risk of data privacy face by customers who use the mobile application because it exposes them to the threat of cyber-attack. Due to lack of awareness among people who use the crowdsupport platform, it has become easier for cybercriminals to hack into the data of users.

What can be done about it?

In this case, Telstra can decide to shut down its mobile application and crowdsupport infrastructure to ensure that it is protected from cyber-attack. But, it will negatively affect the interest of its customers, and it will reduce the profitability of the company. On the other hand, the corporation can improve the security of its crowdsupport platform and mobile application by implementing the latest cybersecurity technology to ensure that it is protected from cyber-attacks and data breach. Customers can also avoid using the digital services of Telstra to ensure that their data is protected.

What are the options?

Following are different options available in this case.

• The corporation can increase its investment in the cybersecurity to ensure that the data of the company and its customers are protected from unauthorised access and data breach.
• The company can shut down its mobile application and crowdsupport platform to protect the data of its customers.
• Customers could stop using the online services of Telstra which would avoid sharing their data and breach of their privacy.

Which option is best – and why?

The best option in this scenario is that the company should increase its investment in the cyber security structure to ensure that the data of the corporation and its customers are secured. This option is the best because it enables the company to ensure that customers are receiving high-quality services and their data is protected at the same time. This option also benefits the company because it maintains its profitability

Telstra decided to move to a digital firm in order to improve the customer services experience of its members and to reduce its overall costs. However, there are many ethical consequences relating to the adaptation of a digital structure which affects the privacy and security of its customers.

IT governance

The principles of IT governance focus on aligning the corporate objectives along with IT investments of the company. The provisions of IT governance provide information about various principles which are necessary to follow by companies while performing their business actions. Compliance with these principles ensures that the corporation made ethical decisions while making decisions regarding IT investments of the company (Tallon, Ramierz and Short, 2013). It ensures that the IT investments which are made by a corporation are focused towards achieving its corporate goals while at the same time they are focused towards protecting the interest of its stakeholders. While implementing the principles of IT governance, there are a number of issues faced by organisations such as IT risk management, delivery of value through IT, the establishment of the governance framework, auditing, activist IT department and directors and sense of teamwork (Chong and Tan, 2012). In case of Telstra, the establishment of an IT risk management is a key issue because the company deals with the data of a large number of people and it is required to implement appropriate measures to ensure that such data is protected from unauthorised access.

What are the issues?

IT governance and issues

The Australian government is strict towards implementation of IT governance principles in organisations. There are a number of rules which corporations have to follow in order to ensure that they avoid any ethical dilemma during their business operations.

• Organisations have a responsibility for ensuring that they effectively use their IT infrastructure to achieve their corporate objectives. They should use the IT infrastructure to influence different stakeholders positively. Telstra uses its IT infrastructure to improve its customer service experience, and the company takes responsibility to protect the privacy of its customers (LeMay, 2014).
• The IT infrastructure strategy should align with the corporate objectives of a company. Telstra focuses on fulfilling its corporate objectives by leveraging its IT infrastructure based on which it maintains a competitive advantage in the telecom industry of Australia.
• While taking business decisions regarding IT infrastructure, the corporation should evaluate both internet and external factors in order to make appropriate business decisions. Telstra has implemented an IT structure which supports both internet and external operations of the company.
• The IT infrastructure should align with the capacity of the corporation to ensure that it is able to provide appropriate resources and services. In case of Telstra, the corporation focuses on implementing an appropriate IT infrastructure that is focused towards protecting the privacy of its customers.
• The regulations regarding effective operations of both internal and external operations of the company should be clearly communicated by the corporation to avoid any discrepancies and Telstra complies with the same as well.
• The IT infrastructure and its regulations should be focused on the requirements of the human capital in the business to fulfil their needs. Telstra focuses on the requirements of its employees as well. The corporation has established two new cybersecurity centres to ensure that its employees have enough technical support to protect the privacy of customers (Reichert, 2017).

Technologies

In order to establish an effective IT structure, Telstra uses a number of technologies which provides them a competitive advantage.

• Firstly, in order to resolve the queries of its customers and provide them high-quality services, the corporation has developed a 24/7 mobile application which can be downloaded by its customers. Customers can manage their account and services directly through the mobile application of the company.
• The corporation has also implemented a crowdsupport platform through which customers can easily resolve their queries. The data of the customers who use these services stored on the servers of the company which are managed by the IT department of the company.
• In case of service downtime or outage, the corporation has implemented a dedicated department that manages such situation in order to ensure that customers’ data is secured.
• In order to provide high-speed internet facility to its customers, Telstra relies on ‘Fibre to the Premises (FTTP)’ technology (Telstra, 2018c). It ensures that the data transmitted by the customers are secured during the transmission, and it is protected from unauthorised access.

Advantages

• Firstly, implementation of a crowdsupport platform is a cost-effective way of managing customer services in a company which provides it a competitive advantage. By using this platform, the corporation is able to reduce its overall operating costs which resulted in increasing its profitability.
• Secondly, developing a 24/7 mobile application assist the company in reaching a larger audience which expands its customer base.
• Use of a digital framework assists the corporation in improving the efficiency of its customer service experience which increased brand loyalty.

Security and Data Control

Along with strict IT regulations, the corporation has established two cybersecurity centres in order to ensure that the data of the company and its customers are protected from cyber-attacks and data breaches (Reichert, 2017). Furthermore, Security Operations Centre (SOC) has been established by the enterprise to ensure that the cyber-attacks faced by the enterprise are affectedly managed. Moreover, the corporation has implemented different IT guidelines which are necessary to comply by its employees to ensure that they did not mistakenly leak any of its classified data which can be used by cybercriminals to hack into its system. Additionally, the corporation ensures that its computer systems and data servers are physically protected to avoid unauthorised access to its data.

Telstra can comply with following recommendations to improve its cybersecurity and IT governance structure.

1. Due to use of 24/7 mobile application and a crowdsupport platform, the data of the company and its customers are continuously transmitted between different devices. In order to protect data during transmission, the corporation is required to use encryption. It will protect its data from unauthorised access because it can only be accessed by the person who has the key to decode such data.
2. Customers who use the crowdsupport platform of the company should be aware of the data which is collected by the corporation to ensure their data is protected from the breach.
3. The company should implement new firewalls to protect its data from the breach. It should invest in building new cybersecurity infrastructure to protect the data of its customers from unauthorised access

Conclusion

From the above observations, it can be concluded that Telstra has become the largest telecom corporation in Australia by relying on digital disruptions. The company has introduced 24/7 mobile application and a crowdsupport platform to provide high-quality customer service experience to its members. However, due to use of these technologies, issues regarding security and privacy of customers have increased because it has become easier for cybercriminals to hack into the data of its customers. In this case, the best solution is that the company should increase its investment in the cybersecurity infrastructure to protect the privacy of its customers and its data. The importance of IT governance and different technologies which are used by the company are discussed which provide a competitive advantage to the company. Recommendations are given in the report which can be used by the enterprise to improve its cybersecurity infrastructure.

References

ABC. (2014) Telstra fined after breaching privacy of 15,775 customers. [Online] ABC. Available at: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-03-11/telstra-breaches-privacy-of-15775-customers/5312256 [Accessed on 5^th June 2018].

Cater-Steel, A., Rajaeian, M.M., Toleman, M. and Troup, D. (2017) The phenomenon of P3 community for IT support: a crowd-support case study. AIS Electronic Library.

Chong, J.L. and Tan, F.B. (2012) IT governance in collaborative networks: A socio-technical perspective. Pacific Asia Journal of the Association for Information Systems, 4(2).

Gallo, P. (2017) Key takeaways from the Telstra Cyber Security Report 2017. [Online] Netway Network. Available at: https://www.netwaynetworks.com.au/telstras-cyber-security-report-2017/ [Accessed on 5^th June 2018].

Lekakos, G., Vlachos, P. and Koritos, C. (2014) Green is good but is usability better? Consumer reactions to environmental initiatives in e-banking services. Ethics and Information Technology, 16(2), pp.103-117.

LeMay, R. (2014) Australian standard published for IT governance. [Online] Delimiter. Available at: https://delimiter.com.au/2014/01/22/australian-standard-published-governance/ [Accessed on 5^th June 2018].

Moon, H. (2018) Auditors face evolving cybersecurity challenges. [Online] ACCA Global. Available at: https://www.accaglobal.com/in/en/member/member/accounting-business/2017/06/practice/cybersecurity-cpd.html [Accessed on 5^th June 2018].

Morley, I. (2017) Telstra maximised their real estate utilisation, streamlined their move process and saved millions. [Online] Serraview. Available at: https://serraview.com/telstra-case-study/ [Accessed on 5^th June 2018].

Redrup, Y. (2018) Telstra warns of record number of ransomware attacks. [Online] Financial Review. Available at: https://www.afr.com/technology/web/security/telstra-warns-of-record-number-of-ransomware-attacks-20180404-h0yb0q [Accessed on 5^th June 2018].

Reichert, C. (2017) Telstra announces two cybersecurity centres, new managed security service. [Online] ZDNet. Available at: https://www.zdnet.com/article/telstra-announces-two-cybersecurity-centres-new-managed-security-service/ [Accessed on 5^th June 2018].

Sarkar, S. (2012) The role of information and communication technology (ICT) in higher education for the 21st century. Science, 1(1), pp.30-41.

Tallon, P.P., Ramirez, R.V. and Short, J.E. (2013) The information artifact in IT governance: toward a theory of information governance. Journal of Management Information Systems, 30(3), pp.141-178.

Telstra. (2017) Telstra 24X7 application. [Online] Telstra. Available at: https://crowdsupport.telstra.com.au/t5/Telstra-24×7-App/Telstra-24X7-application/td-p/693421 [Accessed on 5^th June 2018].

Telstra. (2018a) Our history, leaders & value. [Online] Telstra. Available at: https://www.telstra.com.au/aboutus [Accessed on 5^th June 2018].

Telstra. (2018b) Support. [Online] Telstra. Available at: https://www.telstra.com.au/support [Accessed on 5^th June 2018].

Telstra. (2018c) Fibre to the Premises. [Online] Telstra. Available at: https://www.telstra.com.au/broadband/nbn/fibre-to-the-premises [Accessed on 5^th June 2018].

Uma, M. and Padmavathi, G. (2013) A Survey on Various Cyber Attacks and their Classification. IJ Network Security, 15(5), pp.390-396.