Which of the following can be considered as illegal or unethical in the context of information technology?

1.A hospital reveals the clinical history of a patient without the consent of the patient

2.A student using proprietary software without having a license

3.A person stealing another person's credit card number

4.A college using the Linux operating system, being open-source software, on all its 200 computers on the campus

A1 and 2 only

B2 and 3 only

C1, 2 and 3 only ✓ Correct

D3 and 4 only

Correct answer: (C) 1, 2 and 3 only

Explanation

Revealing patient data without consent, using unlicensed proprietary software, and stealing a credit card number are all illegal or unethical.

Statement 1 is illegal because disclosing a patient's clinical history without consent breaches privacy law.

Statement 2 is unlawful since using proprietary software without a licence violates copyright.

Statement 3 is criminal because stealing another person's credit card number is theft and fraud.

Statement 4 is perfectly legal, as Linux is open source and free to install on any number of machines.

Open source licences such as the GPL expressly permit unlimited installation and sharing.

Want more like this? Create a free account to practise a full test, track your progress, and get spaced-repetition review.