http://qz.com/343750/the-ethical-blindness-of-algorithms/
This article discusses how new technology is being used to classify everything from shoppers, burglars, travelers, and even drivers. It attempts to answer the question of whether an algorithm can be racist. For supermarkets, it has always been important to be able to identify their markets. However, with new technology today, it is possible to define each individual customer by certain characteristics and group them in ethnic groups. Computers can now decide who should be included in certain sales based on their ethnic origins and their buying history. When algorithms track purchase histories and even credit card payments, they have been programmed to place individuals in groups based on race, gender, and ethnicity. This creates ethical issues as each person begins to be placed in groups that he or she may not actually belong in. A computer does not know the difference between racism and non-racism, and therefore can improperly group those who do not belong in certain categories. The issue here is that companies are being accused of racism and using the excuse that since it is a computer making the decisions, they cannot be held accountable. This does not seem like a valid response, as all computer are programmed by humans. It is unethical to group ethnicities simply based on their buying patterns or credit card payments. This behavior unfairly categorizes certain races as always being late on payments, or always buying certain commodities simply because they belong to a specific race or ethnicity.
I don't think its right to group shoppers by ethnicity based on their shopping habits. I agree that a computer does not know the difference between racism or non racism as they are programmed by humans. I believe the company should use a different algorithm to track shopping habits, purchase histories or analyzing credit card payments. This company should be held liable for discrimination but that is just my opinion.
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