Problems of the Computer Age Computer plays more

Problems of the Computer Age
   Is there a dark side to the computer revolution? Do computers threaten the health of our society?
   It certainly doesn’t seem that way of the surface. You don’t expect your home computer to turn its game gun on you. And how can a machine whose chief advantages are speed and efficiency do a threat to our society?
   The truth of the matter, however, is that any new technology—computers included—has a "dark" side.
   Look at the internal combustion engine, for example. Development of the engine led to cars and trucks and these vehicles changed the way people lived. Millions of Americans found jobs in the automobile industry, in the steel industry or construction companies building new highways.
   But the automobile age also brought problems along with it. Cars are deadly weapons in the hands of poor drivers. Their exhaust gases pollute the air, and as gas consumers they can make a nation dependent on foreign oil.
   The dark side of the internal combustion engine doesn’t mean we should abandon cars and trucks, of course. It does mean that we have had to find ways to deal with the problems these vehicles cause. Laws were passed to reduce pollution from car exhaust fumes, and to require safety features in cars. And manufacturers responded to our dependency on foreign oil by making cars more efficient.
   The problems posed by the computer revolution are quite different, of course. One similarity, however, is that computers will change the way the nation works, much as the automobile did.
   Many assembly line jobs, for examples will be taken over by robots and computer-controlled machinery. Since many of these jobs are boring and even dangerous, that seems like a step in the right direction. But it’s a big worry to the people whose jobs are threatened.
   One solution to this problem has been developed in Japan, where manufacturers rely more on robots than American compa nies do. In Japan, employees replaced by robots are given other jobs in the same company.
   Quite a different problems but one that is causing growing concerns is that computers may violate people’s privacy. This problem was recently discussed by many people.
   The lawmakers were talking about "computer matching".With computer matchings, government agencies hope to be able to track down criminals, and stop waste. How? By sharing information about us that they have gathered and stored in their agen cies’ computers.
   Should every government agency have access to the computer fries of every other government agency?
   Almost everyone agrees that the answer is a resounding "No!"
   But almost everyone also agrees that there are eases where computer matching SHOULD be allowed—for example, when tracking down dangerous criminals. How to regulate computer matching so that it does not violate everyone’s right to privacy is a problem.     Yet another problem is computer crime. Clever criminals are finding ways to break computer codes and transfer millions of dollars to their accounts. Last year the Wells Fargo Bank lost more than ＄20 million in this way. Nationwide, the total may have exceeded ＄100 million.
   The list could go on. But if we want computers to work FOR us, we’ll have to find ways to keep people from using computers against us.