Review

Digital Rights and Ethical Dilemmas in Adopting Emerging Technologies: Implications for International Relations and Global Norms

Minji Park 1 *
More Detail
1 Teda International School, Tianjin 300457, China * Corresponding Author
International Journal of Social Sciences and Artistic Innovations, 5(4), December 2025, 1-7, https://doi.org/10.35745/ijssai2025v05.04.0016
Submitted: 16 September 2025, Published: 03 November 2025
OPEN ACCESS   250 Views   318 Downloads
Download Full Text (PDF)

ABSTRACT

The global proliferation of digital technologies has enabled unprecedented connectivity and innovation, yet it has also introduced challenges to human rights and ethical dilemmas, affecting international relations and global norms. Therefore, the manner in which digital technologies are used for surveillance, censorship, and repression by state and non-state actors is examined, and the implications for fundamental human rights are investigated in this review article. Digital rights violations and ethical dilemmas influence the execution of international relations and diplomacy. The digital tools are weaponized for power projection and control, increasing geopolitical tensions, eroding trust between nations, and fragmenting global governance. The struggle over digital norms, data sovereignty, and technological standards has been observed in contemporary diplomacy, necessitating a re-evaluation of international legal frameworks and the establishment of robust global ethical guidelines to safeguard human rights in employing emerging technologies.
Keywords: Digital Rights, Ethical Dilemmas, Emerging Technologies, Surveillance, Censorship, Repression, Human Rights, International Relations, Diplomacy, Global Norms, Cyber Warfare, Data Governance

CITATION (APA)

Park, M. (2025). Digital Rights and Ethical Dilemmas in Adopting Emerging Technologies: Implications for International Relations and Global Norms. International Journal of Social Sciences and Artistic Innovations, 5(4), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.35745/ijssai2025v05.04.0016

REFERENCES

  1. Chauhan, S.S., Sahay, N., & Marwah, R. (2025). The Influence of Digital Diplomacy on Traditional Diplomatic Practices: Transforming Roles and Functions through Social Media. South India Journal of Social Sciences, 23, 1–4. https://doi.org/10.62656/SIJSS.v23i4.2024
  2. Domazet, S.S., & Dinić, S.S. (2022). International Legal Aspects of Mass Surveillance and Implications on Privacy. Kultura Polisa, 19, 79–9713. https://doi.org/10.51738/Kpolisa2022.19.1r.5dd
  3. Eichensehr, L. (2022). United States Pressures China Over Human Rights Abuses. American Journal of International Law, 433–438. Available online: https://www.law.virginia.edu/scholarship/publication/kristen-eichensehr/1573406 (accessed on July 29, 2025).
  4. Feldstein, S. (2019). Findings and Three Key Insights. In The Global Expansion of AI Surveillance; Washington, DC, USA: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace; pp. 7–10.
  5. Floridi, L. (2021). Mapping the Ethics of Algorithms. In The Ethics of AI; Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
  6. Freedom House. (2023). Freedom on the Net 2023: The Repressive Power of AI. Freedom House, Washington, DC, USA. Available online: https://freedomhouse.org/sites/default/files/2023-10/Freedom-on-the-net-2023-DigitalBooklet.pdf (accessed on July 29, 2025).
  7. Human Rights Watch. (2019). China’s Algorithms of Repression: Reverse Engineering a Xinjiang Police Database. Available online: https://www.hrw.org/report/2019/05/01/chinas-algorithms-repression/reverse-engineering-xinjiang-police-mass (accessed on July 29, 2025).
  8. Lubis, M., Safitra, M.F., Fakhrurroja, H., & Muttaqin, A.N. (2025). Guarding Our Vital Systems: A Metric for Critical Infrastructure Cyber Resilience. Sensors, 25, 4545. https://doi.org/10.3390/s25154545
  9. Maizland, L. (2022). China’s Repression of Uyghurs in Xinjiang. Available online: https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/china-xinjiang-uyghurs-muslims-repression-genocide-human-rights (accessed on July 29, 2025).
  10. Mendoza, C. (2022). The Age of Surveillance Capitalism: The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power. Church, Communication and Culture, 7, 452–455. https://doi.org/10.1080/23753234.2022.2086891
  11. Padden, M. (2023). The transformation of surveillance in the digitalisation discourse of the OECD: A brief genealogy. Internet Policy Review, 12(3), 1720. https://doi.org/10.14763/2023.3.1720
  12. Radsch, C. (2022). AI and Disinformation: State-Aligned Information Operations and the Distortion of the Public Sphere. OSCE, Vienna, Austria. Available online: https://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4192038 (accessed on September 29, 2025).
  13. Seo, H., & Thorson, S. (2017). Network Approach to Regime Type and Global Internet Connectedness. Journal of Global Information Technology Management, 20, 141–155. https://doi.org/10.1080/1097198X.2017.1354597
  14. Servaes, J. (2012). Public Diplomacy: Soft power and public diplomacy: The new frontier for public relations and international communication between the US and China. Public Relations Review, 38, 643–651. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2012.07.002
  15. The Guardian. (2021). The Pegasus Project: Surveillance. Available online: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/18/revealed-leak-uncovers-global-abuse-of-cyber-surveillance-weapon-nso-group-pegasus (accessed on July 29, 2025).
  16. Tumber, H., & Waisbord, S. (2017). The Media and Human Rights: Mapping the Field. In The Routledge Companion to Media and Human Rights; Tumber, H., & Waisbord, S., Eds.; London, UK: Routledge, pp.1–14.
  17. United Nations General Assembly. (2020). The right to privacy in the digital age: resolution / adopted by the General Assembly. Available online: https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/3896430?v=pdf (accessed on July 29, 2025).
  18. United Nations. (1948). Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Available online: https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/migration/generalassembly/docs/globalcompact/A_RES_217(III).pdf (accessed on July 29, 2025).
  19. Volokh, E. (2025). The Future of Government Pressure on Social Media Platforms. Journal of Free Speech Law, 6, 403–422. Available online: https://www.journaloffreespeechlaw.org/volokh6.pdf (accessed on July 29, 2025).
  20. World Economic Forum. (2025). Global Cybersecurity Outlook 2025. Available online: https://reports.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Global_Cybersecurity_Outlook_2025.pdf (accessed on July 29, 2025).
  21. Zhuravskaya, E., Petrova, M., & Enikolopov, R. (2020). Political Effects of the Internet and Social Media. Annual Review of Economics, 12, 415–438. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-economics-081919-050239