The Ways BCIs can be Abused and The Necessary Preventative Actions

Abstract

The development of the brain-computer interface (BCI) reveals the plethora of its uses in the modern world. From hospitals and medicine to entertainment and gaming, the BCI shows great potential to improve human lives. As BCIs continue to advance, the question of ethics arises. This paper discusses six main concerns that have emerged with the growth of BCIs, and an explanation of why action must be taken to prevent these possible issues. These issues include: data security and privacy, monitoring and influencing affective states, the manipulation of affective states, unethical uses in a corporate environment, lack of understanding the possible unintended consequences of using such technology, and unequal access to the technology itself. The paper concludes that there are many examples of technologies that have developed rapidly without proper guardrails, and the BCI, with an incredible amount of potential, is another example of technology that poses risks in absence of the right guardrails. It ends with suggesting approaches for enacting, through the government, regulatory oversight to provide the right guardrails to protect society.