Please provide feedback from the below.

1. As the Chief Executive Officer of one of the world's leading organizations for technology and worldwide communication, the security of our customer's data is one of my upmost concerns. Consumers who use Apple products, have a high degree of faith in our ability to secure their private communications and keep the data out of the hands of those who would use it for unworthy causes. Our stance on data security has recently come in conflict with the efforts of government agencies who wish to protect citizens by gaining access to the communications of those who are accused of crimes relating to terrorism and mass shootings. Due to this conflict between protecting user data and keeping American citizens safe from harm, Apple has initiated an internal review of our processes. During this review we will look at our stance, through the lens of the most well-known branches of business ethics, to ensure that our policies are in-line with the core values that the company was founded upon and the ever increasing need for safety of U.S. citizens.2. We will first look at our current stance as it compares to the Utilitarianism branch of ethics. Through this method we focus on the outcome of the decision, and try to pick an option that will provide the greatest good for the greatest number of people (Gilbert, 2016, Page 48). This leads us to consider if our customers (and the American population as a whole) are better served by a policy that protects their personal data on an unlimited basis, or if they would be better served with a policy that has some limited options of releasing that data if it can lead to the protection of human lives. To help us make the decision we should also take into account who the stakeholders of this decision would be, and if the decision we are led to though Utilitarianism is in-line with the organizations core values: a. Which Decision Benefits the greatest number of Stakeholders: There are many stakeholders who would be effected by a decision to loosen our stance on data privacy. The internal stakeholders would be shareholders who have invested in the company and may see unpredictable returns on their investment, the policy team that will have to draft the new policy procedures, the executive team that will have to approve the policy, and the customer service staff that will be tasked with explaining the policy to our customers. The external stakeholders are our customers who may have less faith in our ability to protect their data, the federal government who will be provided with a new tool to be able to protect U.S. citizens, potential criminals who may be less likely to commit certain crimes due to their increased chances of being prosecuted, and the general population who would may feel a greater sense of security. By taking into account all of these stakeholders, it is observed that the temporary negative reaction to the company's stock prices and customer confidence is outweighed by the increased safety of the entire U.S. population. b. Does the Utilitarianism view align with the core values of the Organization: The products that Apple has created have always been not just about making a profit, but also about providing a platform for information to be shared worldwide, in order to promote the safety and security every human being. This is seen through the use of our products to communicate during natural disasters, the ability of deployed soldiers to communicate with family members, and by providing a platform for marginalized citizens throughout the world to be heard. Apple has always been about doing the greatest amount of good for the greatest number of people, and providing a limited means to help law enforcement prevent acts of terrorism and mass shootings will provide an environment in which our customers can have a sense of peace when they travel to public places.3. We will next look at our current policies as they compare to the Rights and Duties branch of ethics. This branch focuses not on the outcome of the decision but on the morality of the decision itself. It establishes that humans have certain natural rights, and throughout history the primary natural right has been the right to life (Gilbert, 2016, Page 69). This sense of a right for every human to live is seen in the core commandments of most world religions, as well as in foundational documents of many modern governments. It is a universal value that humans shouldn't be forced to forfeit their lives without just cause. The other side of this universal right is a universal duty that those who have the power to protect human lives will make every effort to do so. We must also take into account the right to privacy that is enjoyed by U.S citizens. This right would be infringed upon to a degree, by allowing limited access to customer data. However; even though this right to privacy is of upmost importance, it does not outweigh the right of all humans to be given every opportunity to survive in this world. 4. Finally, we will look at our current privacy policies as they compare to the Fairness and Justice branch of ethics. This branch of ethics looks at how the decision or act treats individuals who are similarly situated (Gilbert, 2016, Page 83). In our case we need to look at who will be negatively affected by this decision and if those negative outcomes are equal, or if there are certain groups that are unfairly suffering excessive negative consequences. The primary negative consequence in this decision is that it removes some privacy protections on commutation that is deemed to be dangerous to the health and safety of the U.S population. While at first glance this seems to only effect a very small percentage of the population who intend to do harm by carrying out acts of terrorism or mass shootings, it is noted that this decision may open the door for increased surveillance of private conversations by the federal government. In order to limit this unnecessary access of private data, it will be the stance of our organization that customer data will only be released when it has been deemed necessary by a federal judge for a specific case through a federal warrant. By limiting the release of this data to a specific case that has met the burden of proof for a federal warrant, we remove the opportunity for general surveillance of private conversations, and reduce the pool of those effected by this decision to only those who wish to do harm to innocent people.5. In closing, after reviewing the current stance of Apples Privacy Policy through the lens of Business Ethics, it has been concluded that this organization should make small exceptions to our privacy standards when it is in the best interest of the customers we serve. Once the federal government has met its obligation of establishing a reasonable cause for needing the data to prevent the potential loss of life or bodily injury, and has obtained a warrant from a federal judge, Apple will release the specific data that is outlined in the warrant. This position creates the greatest good for the greatest number of people, protects the right to life of our customers, and preserves the sense of fairness that is provided to American citizens though our established laws and regulations