Report from the first workshop on cyber ethics in platial research

The examination of morality has a long-standing history in philosophy, but recent events, including the dramatic rise of computational technologies has expanded the field into a multidisciplinary study of ethics. With the global connectivity provided by the Internet,cyber ethics is unique due to rapid changes in technology and ever-changing ethical considerations pertaining to everything from human subjects to artificial intelligence (AI). Among the deluge of data generated by machines and humans, place-based information is special due to its vague boundaries, subjectivity, and heterogeneity of descriptive data. Compared to spatial data, platial information is a much broader concept as it is more than simply geographic coordinates and often involves human attachments. While we fully support the recent renewed interest in the field of geoethics(Goodchild, 2022), we also feel it is important to discuss ethic beyond the surface of the earth. Here, we propose to extend this discussion to include cyberspace and bring together the concepts of cyber and geo-ethical studies under the umbrella of place-based cyber ethics. We encourage the readers of this workshop report to reflect on these questions and the importance of place-based cyber ethics in their own work.