“Technology in Wartime” is a one day conference to be held January 26, 2008, at Stanford University Law School and sponsored by “Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility. It will attract an international audience of computer scientists, policy makers, military professionals, human rights workers, and academics. The goal of this non-partisan conference will be to consider the ethical implications of wartime technologies and how these technologies are likely to affect civilization in years to come. Ultimately the question that the organisers pose is this: What should socially-responsible computer professionals do in a time of high tech warfare?
The conference is divided into five sections entitled; autonomous weapons and human responsibility, surveillance, cyberterrorism, smart soldiers in battle and what would socially-responsible computer scientists do?
Papers address issues such as how technology is used during war, not only for combat but also to maintain privacy to enable soldiers to document their experiences on the internet and in human rights interventions.
The Bassetti Foundation American correspondent Jeff Ubois will speak during the final session and the proceedings will be broadcast live on the internet.