├── LICENSE.md ├── CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md ├── README.md ├── i18n-checklist-response └── index.html /LICENSE.md: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 | All documents in this Repository are licensed by contributors 2 | under the 3 | [W3C Software and Document License](https://www.w3.org/Consortium/Legal/copyright-software). 4 | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- /CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 | # Code of Conduct 2 | 3 | All documentation, code, communication and discussion in this repository are covered by the [W3C Code of Conduct](https://www.w3.org/policies/code-of-conduct/). 4 | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- /README.md: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 | This repository contains the [Editor's Draft](https://w3ctag.github.io/ethical-web-principles/) of the [W3C TAG Ethical Web Principles](https://www.w3.org/2001/tag/doc/ethical-web-principles/) TAG Finding. Here's the abstract: 2 | 3 | > The web should be a platform that helps people and provides a net positive social benefit. As we continue to evolve the web platform, we must therefore consider the ethical consequences of our work. The following document sets out ethical principles that will drive the TAG's continuing work in this direction. 4 | 5 | You can help make this document better! Feel free to [file an issue](https://github.com/w3ctag/ethical-web-principles/issues/new) with your thoughts or suggestions. 6 | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- /i18n-checklist-response: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 | This short review is for the following spec: [Spec_name](url_of_the_spec). 2 | 3 | 1. [ ] _If the spec (or its implementation) contains any natural language text that will be read by a human (this includes error messages or other UI text, JSON strings, etc, etc),_ **ensure that there’s metadata about and support for basic things such as language and text direction**. Also check the detailed guidance for [Language](https://www.w3.org/TR/international-specs/#resource) and [Text direction](https://www.w3.org/TR/international-specs/#text_direction). 4 | 5 | Comments_go_here. 6 | - [X] Not applicable 7 | 8 | 2. [ ] _If the spec (or its implementation) allows content authors to produce typographically appealing text, either in its own right, or in association with graphics._ **take into account the different typographic styles used around the world (for things such as line-breaking, text justification, emphasis or other text decorations, text selection and units, etc.)** Also check the detailed guidance for [Typographic support](https://www.w3.org/TR/international-specs/#typography). 9 | 10 | Comments_go_here. 11 | - [X] Not applicable 12 | 13 | 3. [ ] _If the spec (or its implementation) allows the user to point into text, creates text fragments, concatenates text, allows the user to select or step through text (using a cursor or other methods), etc._ **make allowances for the ways different scripts handle units of text**. Also check the detailed guidance for [Text-processing](https://www.w3.org/TR/international-specs/#operations). 14 | 15 | Comments_go_here. 16 | - [X] Not applicable 17 | 18 | 4. [ ] _If the spec (or its implementation) allows searching or matching of text, including syntax and identifiers_ **understand the implications of normalisation, case folding, etc**. Also check the detailed guidance for [Text-processing](https://www.w3.org/TR/international-specs/#operations). 19 | 20 | Comments_go_here 21 | - [X] Not applicable 22 | 23 | 5. [ ] _If the spec (or its implementation) sorts text_ **ensure that it does so in locally relevant ways**. Also check the detailed guidance for [Text-processing](https://www.w3.org/TR/international-specs/#operations). 24 | 25 | Comments go here. 26 | - [X] Not applicable 27 | 28 | 6. [ ] _If the spec (or its implementation) captures user input_ **ensure that it also captures metadata about language and text direction, and that it accommodates locale-specific input methods**. 29 | 30 | Comments go here. 31 | - [X] Not applicable 32 | 33 | 7. [ ] _If the spec (or its implementation) deals with time in any way that will be read by humans and/or crosses time zone boundaries_ **ensure that it will represent time as expected in locales around the world, and manage the relationship between local and global/absolute time**. Also check the detailed guidance for [Local dates, times and formats](https://www.w3.org/TR/international-specs/#locale). 34 | 35 | Comments go here. 36 | - [X] Not applicable 37 | 38 | 8. [ ] _If the spec (or its implementation) allows any character encoding other than UTF-8._ **make sure you have a convincing argument as to why, and then ensure that the character encoding model is correct**. Also check the detailed guidance for [Characters](https://www.w3.org/TR/international-specs/#characters). 39 | 40 | Comments go here. 41 | - [X] Not applicable 42 | 43 | 9. [ ] _If the spec (or its implementation) defines markup_ **ensure support for internationalisation features and avoid putting human-readable text in attribute values or plain-text elements**. Also check the detailed guidance for [Markup & syntax](https://www.w3.org/TR/international-specs/#markup). 44 | 45 | Comments go here. 46 | - [X] Not applicable 47 | 48 | 10. [ ] _If the spec (or its implementation) deals with names, addresses, time & date formats, etc_ **ensure that the model is flexible enough to cope with wide variations in format, levels of data, etc**. Also check the detailed guidance for [Local dates, times and formats](https://www.w3.org/TR/international-specs/#locale). 49 | 50 | Comments go here. 51 | - [X] Not applicable 52 | 53 | 11. [ ] _If the spec (or its implementation) describes a format or data that is likely to need localization._ **ensure that there’s an approach in place which allows effective storage and labelling of, and access to localised alternatives for strings, text, images, etc**. 54 | 55 | Comments go here. 56 | - [X] Not applicable 57 | 58 | 12. [X] _If the spec (or its implementation) makes any reference to or relies on any cultural norms_ **ensure that it can be adapted to suit different cultural norms around the world (ranging from depictions of people or gestures, to expectations about gender roles, to approaches to work and life, etc)**. 59 | 60 | The document has had input from and has been reviewed by people from multiple cultures but we would be more than open to any feedback on how to make it more widely applicable and understood. 61 | - [ ] Not applicable 62 | 63 | Short i18n review checklist is [here](https://www.w3.org/International/i18n-drafts/techniques/shortchecklist.html) 64 | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- /index.html: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 | 2 | 3 | Ethical Web Principles 4 | 6 | 42 | 43 | 44 |
45 | The web should be a platform that helps people 46 | and provides a positive social benefit. 47 | As we continue to evolve the web platform, 48 | we must therefore consider the consequences of our work. 49 | The following document sets out ethical principles 50 | that will drive the W3C's continuing work in this direction. 51 |
52 | 53 |
54 | This document is a draft Technical Architecture Group (TAG) Finding. 55 | It does not contain any normative content. 56 | 57 | This document reflects the consensus of the TAG at the time of publication. 58 | It will continue to evolve and the TAG will issue updates as often as needed. 59 |
60 | 61 | ## Introduction {#intro} 62 | 63 | The web should empower an equitable, informed, and interconnected society. 64 | It has been, and should continue to be, designed 65 | to enable communication and knowledge-sharing for everyone. 66 | In order for the web to continue to be beneficial to society, 67 | we need to consider the ethical implications of our work 68 | when we build web technologies, applications, and sites. 69 | 70 | The web is made up of a number of technologies and technical standards. 71 | HTML, CSS, and JavaScript are often thought of as the web's core set of technologies 72 | but there are many other technologies, standards, 73 | languages and APIs that come together to form the "web platform." 74 | We strive to maintain a strong ethical framework as a differentiator for the web platform, 75 | for example an emphasis on 76 | [internationalization](https://www.w3.org/International/), 77 | [accessibility](https://www.w3.org/WAI/), 78 | [privacy](https://www.w3.org/Privacy/), and 79 | [security](https://www.w3.org/Security/). 80 | Web technologies are also released for use under a 81 | [royalty-free license](https://www.w3.org/Consortium/Patent-Policy/) 82 | to enable open source implementation. 83 | We build new web technologies in a collaborative manner 84 | according to open processes 85 | (for example, the W3C process), 86 | and in inclusive environments adhering to codes of conduct 87 | (such as the W3C Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct). 88 | 89 | These are often cited as some of the strengths of the web. 90 | Despite this, in the 30 years since the development of the web began, 91 | it has become clear that the web platform can often be used in ways that subvert its original mission 92 | or even be used to cause harm. 93 | 94 | The architecture of the web is designed with 95 | the notion of different classes of application that retrieve and process content, 96 | and represent the needs of the application's users. 97 | This includes web browsers, 98 | web-hosted applications such as search engines, 99 | and software that acts on web resources. 100 | This lends itself well towards empowering people 101 | by allowing them to choose the browser, search engine, or other application 102 | that best meets their needs 103 | (for example, with strong privacy protections). 104 | 105 | The web should also support human rights, dignity, and personal agency. 106 | We need to put internationally recognized human rights at the core of the web platform [[?UDHR]]. 107 | We can reinforce this approach by promoting ethical thinking across the web industry. 108 | 109 | The principles in this document are deliberately unordered, 110 | and many are interconnected with each other. 111 | They are intended to be read together, rather than each in isolation, and to collectively support 112 | a web that is beneficial for society. 113 | When the effects of upholding one principle 114 | may diminish the efficacy of another principle, the benefits and tradeoffs 115 | need to be carefully balanced. 116 | It is important to consider the context in which the technology 117 | is being applied, the expected audience(s) for the technology, 118 | who the technology benefits and who it may disadvantage, 119 | and any power dynamics involved (see also the 120 | priority of constituencies). 121 | 122 |
123 | 124 | ### Purpose {#purpose} 125 | 126 | This is a statement of the ethical principles of the W3C community. 127 | Spec developers, authors, and reviewers can use it to guide their thinking. 128 | In particular, the purpose of this document is to 129 | inform wide review of new charters, 130 | new specifications, and 131 | candidate additions to published recommendations. 132 | Others can read this document to understand how we are informing 133 | our design process with ethical considerations. 134 | 135 | For actionable guidance applicable to spec editors, site authors, 136 | and others designing and building parts of the web platform, 137 | see the [[[Design-Principles]]], [[[security-privacy-questionnaire]]], 138 | the [[[Privacy-Principles]]], and [TAG Findings](https://tag.w3.org/findings/). 139 | 140 |
141 | 142 | 143 | ## Principles 144 | 145 |
146 |

147 | There is one web 148 |

149 |

150 | When we are adding new web technologies and platforms, 151 | we will build them to cross regional and national boundaries. 152 | People in one location should be able to view web pages 153 | from anywhere that is connected to the web. 154 |

155 |
156 | 157 |
158 |

159 | The web does not cause harm to society 160 |

161 |

162 | When we are adding a feature or technology to the web, 163 | we will work to prevent or mitigate any harm it might cause society or groups, 164 | especially to vulnerable people. 165 | We consider a range of threat models that account for abuse scenarios 166 | at different scales, from societal to interpersonal. 167 | We will prioritize potential benefits for web users over potential benefits to web developers, 168 | content providers, user agents, advertisers, or others in the ecosystem, 169 | in line with the 170 | priority of constituencies. 171 | We commit to learning about and understanding diverse perspectives, 172 | and will strive to reflect a respect for that diversity in the designs we produce, 173 | so that our designs properly respect the interests and views of 174 | all of the people who might be affected by them. 175 |

176 |
177 | 178 |
179 |

180 | The web supports healthy community and debate 181 |

182 |

183 | We are building technologies and platforms for distributing ideas, 184 | for virtual interaction, 185 | and for mass collaboration on any topic. 186 | While those tools can be used for good, 187 | they can also be used for spreading misinformation, 188 | revealing private personal information (doxing), 189 | harassment, and persecution. 190 | We will consider these risks in the work we do, 191 | and will build web technologies and platforms 192 | that respect individuals' rights 193 | and provide features to empower them against dangers like these. 194 |

195 |
196 | 197 |
198 |

199 | The web is for all people 200 |

201 |

202 | People should not need a high level of technical literacy to use the web. 203 | Web platform technologies should behave consistently and intuitively. 204 | We will build internationalization and localization capabilities 205 | into our specifications and websites, including support for different languages. 206 | Our specifications and websites are well internationalized, 207 | provide support for language and cultural adaptation, and support localization, 208 | so that our work is accessible to all users, regardless of language, writing system, 209 | or culture. 210 | We will accommodate people on low bandwidth networks and with low specification equipment. 211 | The web platform and the tools we use to create it 212 | must be accessible to people with disabilities, 213 | including visual, auditory, physical, speech, cognitive, language, learning, and neurological disabilities. 214 | Anyone should be able to meaningfully participate 215 | in the creation of specifications, user agents, and content, 216 | and the platform should enable a fully accessible end-user experience. 217 |

218 |
219 | 220 |
221 |

222 | The web is secure, and respects peoples' privacy 223 |

224 |

225 | When we add features to the web platform, 226 | we are making decisions that impact peoples' 227 | ability to control their personal data. 228 | This data includes their conversations, 229 | their financial transactions 230 | and how they live their lives. 231 | We will start by creating web technologies 232 | that create as few potential threats to web users as possible, 233 | and mitigate the threats that we cannot avoid. 234 | We will make sure people understand 235 | what risks they are taking when they use the web. 236 |

237 |
238 | 239 |
240 |

241 | The web enables freedom of expression 242 |

243 |

244 | We will create web technologies and platforms 245 | that encourage free expression, 246 | where that does not contravene other human rights. 247 | Our work should not enable state censorship, surveillance 248 | or other practices that seek to limit this freedom. 249 | This principle must be balanced with respect for other human rights 250 | and does not imply that individual services on the web must therefore support all speech. 251 | (For example: hate speech, harassment or abuse may reasonably be denied a platform). 252 |

253 |
254 | 255 |
256 |

257 | The web makes it possible to verify information 258 |

259 |

260 | Society relies on the integrity of public information. 261 | We have a responsibility to build web technologies to counter misinformation 262 | and to maintain the integrity of information for public good. 263 | The public needs verifiable source and context information to recognize 264 | trustworthy web publishers and content. 265 | The concept of origin and 266 | its relationship with information sources 267 | are core to the web's security model. 268 |

269 |
270 | 271 |
272 |

273 | The web enhances individuals' control and power 274 |

275 |

276 | We recognize that web technologies can be used 277 | to manipulate and deceive people, complicate isolation, and encourage addictive behaviors. 278 | We seek to mitigate against these potential abuses 279 | and patterns 280 | when creating new technologies and platforms, 281 | and avoid introducing technologies that increase the chance of 282 | people being harmed in this way. 283 | We aim to reduce centralization in web architecture, 284 | minimizing single points of failure and single points of control. 285 | We will also build web technologies for individual developers 286 | as well as for developers at large companies and organizations. 287 | The web should enable do-it-yourself developers. 288 |

289 |
290 | 291 |
292 |

293 | The web is an environmentally sustainable platform 294 |

295 |

296 | Web technologies may have overall positive environmental impacts 297 | as well as negative impacts, 298 | and these can change over time and vary geographically as 299 | both web and environmental technologies develop. 300 | We will endeavor not to do further harm to the environment 301 | when we introduce new technologies to the web and keep in mind 302 | that people most affected by the environmental consequences of new technologies 303 | may not be those who benefit from the features introduced. 304 | This includes, but is not limited to, 305 | lowering carbon emissions by minimizing data storage and processing requirements, as well as reducing electronic waste by 306 | maximizing the lifespan of physical devices through backwards compatibility. 307 |

308 |
309 | 310 |
311 |

312 | The web is transparent 313 |

314 |

315 | The web was built on a "view source" principle, 316 | currently realized through robust developer tools built into many browsers. 317 | We will always make sure it is possible 318 | to determine how a web application was built 319 | and how the code works. 320 | Furthermore, we will always make sure it is possible 321 | to audit and inspect web applications and underlying software 322 | for security, privacy, or other considerations. 323 |

324 |
325 | 326 |
327 |

328 | The web is multi-browser, multi-OS and multi-device 329 |

330 |

331 | We will not create web technologies that encourage the creation of websites 332 | that work only in one browser, 333 | or only on particular hardware. 334 | We expect that content provided by accessing a URL 335 | should yield a thematically consistent experience 336 | when someone is accessing it from different devices. 337 | The existence of multiple interoperable implementations 338 | enables competition, and thus a variety of choices 339 | for web users. 340 |

341 |
342 | 343 |
344 |

345 | People can render web content as they want 346 |

347 |

348 | People must be able to change web pages according to their needs. 349 | For example, people should be able to install style sheets, 350 | assistive browser extensions, 351 | and blockers of unwanted content or scripts or auto-played videos. 352 | We will build features and write specifications 353 | that respect peoples' agency, 354 | and will create user agents to represent those preferences on the web user's behalf. 355 |

356 |
357 | 358 |
359 |

Acknowlegements

360 |

361 | The TAG would like to thank the following people for their help, input, and feedback 362 | during the conceptualization and ongoing development of this document: 363 | Tantek Çelik (Mozilla), 364 | Oluwatomisin Niyi-Awosusi, 365 | Joanna J. Bryson (Professor of Ethics and Technology, Centre for Digital Governance, Hertie School), 366 | Wendy Seltzer. 367 |

368 |
369 | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------