RFC 1087 (rfc1087) - Page 2 of 2

Ethics and the Internet

RFC 1087                Ethics and the Internet             January 1989


   and effectively.  Justification for the support of this system
   suffers when highly disruptive abuses occur.  Access to and use of
   the Internet is a privilege and should be treated as such by all
   users of this system.

   The IAB strongly endorses the view of the Division Advisory Panel of
   the National Science Foundation Division of Network, Communications
   Research and Infrastructure which, in paraphrase, characterized as
   unethical and unacceptable any activity which purposely:

      (a) seeks to gain unauthorized access to the resources of the
          Internet,

      (b) disrupts the intended use of the Internet,

      (c) wastes resources (people, capacity, computer) through such
          actions,

      (d) destroys the integrity of computer-based information,

   and/or

      (e) compromises the privacy of users.

   The Internet exists in the general research milieu.  Portions of it
   continue to be used to support research and experimentation on
   networking.  Because experimentation on the Internet has the
   potential to affect all of its components and users, researchers have
   the responsibility to exercise great caution in the conduct of their
   work.  Negligence in the conduct of Internet-wide experiments is both
   irresponsible and unacceptable.

   The IAB plans to take whatever actions it can, in concert with
   Federal agencies and other interested parties, to identify and to set
   up technical and procedural mechanisms to make the Internet more
   resistant to disruption.  Such security, however, may be extremely
   expensive and may be counterproductive if it inhibits the free flow
   of information which makes the Internet so valuable.  In the final
   analysis, the health and well-being of the Internet is the
   responsibility of its users who must, uniformly, guard against abuses
   which disrupt the system and threaten its long-term viability.










Internet Activities Board