Gender Issues in the Cyber Era

This course explores the potential of cyber technologies, digital communications, and AI to challenge some of the drivers of gender-based inequality. It also, conversely, examines the gender biases embedded in the production and design of these technologies, and their impacts on the effort to eliminate gender discrimination and injustice. The technologies that have so deeply impacted social interactions, work environments, and security systems are not neutral. Digital systems, algorithms, and AI frameworks often reflect and perpetuate pre-existing societal biases, particularly regarding gender. This course explores how gender biases are manifested in technological systems, including how women, non-binary individuals, and marginalized genders differentially access digital tools and cyber spaces, how they are represented (or misrepresented) in digital spaces, and how these historical and systemic gender prejudices impact their opportunities, safety, and autonomy. From communication technologies like social media platforms, to financial inclusion tools such as blockchain and cryptocurrencies, to advanced AI systems, we will critically examine how gender shapes¿and is shaped by¿digital systems and AI decision-making. This process is affected by the gender imbalance in the development of these technologies, exemplified by the dominance of men in tech industries. We will also explore the gendered construction and implications of cybersecurity measures, including the deployment of autonomous weapons.