IMPACTS OF INAPPROPRIATE DATA GATHERING 1
Impacts of Inappropriate Data Gathering
Alejandro Cuervo
Department of Business, Liberty University
BMAL 720: Leveraging Data for Decision Making (B04)
Dr. James Brown
October 05, 2025
IMPACTS OF INAPPROPRIATE DATA GATHERING 2
Abstract
Data collection constitutes a significant portion of business analytics and decision-making.
Collected data, especially when it is valid and ethically collected, will aid organizations in making
effective strategic decisions, building trust with their stakeholders, and enhancing
organizational watchfulness. Inappropriate data collection, though, like selective sampling,
incomplete procedures, or even immoral techniques, can be detriment in a big way to a
business in the realms of accuracy, sullying reputations, and even putting a company at risk of
litigation and potentially enormous costs. The relationship between Christian leadership and
ethical data gathering is discussed in this paper. It explains the data-gathering processes may be
conducted with a sense of justice, about people and God, with some Christian values that guide
the undertakings, comprising honesty, stewardship, integrity, and accountability. Developing the
concepts of contemporary business analytic literature and the Bible, the discussion shows how
Christian leadership shields organizations against ineffective data practices and promotes
transparency, trust, and fairness. Finally, Christian values have been integrated into the data
collection, making analytics one of the faithful stewards’ effectiveness that renders business
success based on truth and sustainability.
Keywords: Accountability, integrity, respect, fairness, stewardship
Impacts of Inappropriate Data Gathering
In the 21st century, data has become one of the most valued assets of any organization.
The application of analytics in business is on the rise, informed by the insights required to make
important decisions, identify opportunities, and develop a competitive edge. However, what is
more important is that such conclusions may be valid only if the collected data is correct. Any
inappropriate data gathering, whether intentional or unintentional, violates this procedure and
may lead to catastrophic outcomes. Although most literature on business analytics emphasizes
IMPACTS OF INAPPROPRIATE DATA GATHERING 3
the technical implications of adequate data collection practice, Christian leaders bring another
set of criteria, which sees the subject as a moral issue. By integrating Bible-based values, they
would realize that information is not only a resource to be capitalized on but also a trust to be
dealt with in a virtuous manner. The propensity to lie is now a task of the Lord, Proverbs 12:22,
“Lying lips are abhorrent to Yahweh; dear to him those who make truth their way of life” (The
New Jerusalem Bible, 1985, Proverbs 12:22). When applied to the area of doing business, this
verse emphasizes the moral importance of honesty in terms of information being collected,
administered, and utilized. This paper will review the risk of unethical data collection and how
Christian values can inform data ethics. It contends that once leaders operate under the
influence of biblical concepts, organizational cultures with a clear focus on accuracy,
transparency, and accountability are built, whereby data-driven decision are technically sound
and consider moral and ethical issues.
The Significance of Proper Dat Collection
The effectiveness of business analytics is pegged on the basis that data input through
models and systems is accurate. In line with the above explanation, the issue of garbage in and
garbage out implies that corrupted input data is bound to lead to corrupted results, no matter
how advance the models are applied. Data collection should only adopt unbiased methods
where representative samples are chosen, and data integrity should be maintained in the
process (Mitchell et al., 2022). Take the scenario of an organization that wants to determine
customer satisfaction. When the survey reaches a small segment of the population or users
questions to encourage the respondents to answer in a specific manner, the survey results
would not reflect the worldwide views of the clientele. Management at businesses that depend
on such erroneous information may be lured into thinking that interest is colossal and therefore,
IMPACTS OF INAPPROPRIATE DATA GATHERING 4
fail to make essential changes in areas such as service provision and eventually impede the
business’s
success.
Sharda et al., (2024), states that business intelligence systems rely on data integrity.
Modern organizations must deal with tremendous amounts of structured and unstructured
data, which is why incorrect data collection would cause cascading effects to all the systems. A
little mistake in data entry will cause forecasting to be skewed, predictive models to be misled,
and strategic errors to recur. Therefore, appropriate data collection is a technical imperative and
a strategy critical to ensuring an organization’s long-term health.
The Devastating Consequences of Inappropriate Data Gathering
The repercussions of organizations that cannot collect data properly could be
farreaching. Inappropriate data translates into inappropriate decision-making. A bank that
issues loans based on imperfect or biased risk information, such as incomplete or skewed data,
may experience high load defaults that compromise financial stability. Data misuse also destroys
stakeholders’ trust (Miller-Naudé & Naudé, 2022). This situation is reported by high-profile
scandals like the Facebook Cambridge Analytica case, which shows how improper data
gathering undermines the population’s trust. When consumers learn that their data is being
harvested or used in ways that is has not been consensually entered, they tend to lose the
endearment of their services, which can expose the organization to a potential reputational
threat.
Besides the threat to reputation, legal and financial costs may also be substantial. Data
collection and use are subject to stringent measures that the governments and regulatory
agencies pit in place, especially in healthcare and finance. When organizations do not devise
strategies to meet these standards, they might face fines, lawsuits, and loss of operating license.
IMPACTS OF INAPPROPRIATE DATA GATHERING 5
Lastly, wrong data collection harms the organization’s culture (Balboni & Francis, 2025). When
leaders practice or accept careless or unethical data practices, employees learn that it is
acceptable to approach data practices with less pedantry. This destroys accountability and
integrity in every aspect of the business, with time undercutting the basis of organizational
health.
Christian Values as a Guide for Ethical Data Collection
Christian leadership offers an ethical framework to deal with such issues and enhance
integrity based on data practices. The biblical principles of honesty, integrity, stewardship, and
accountability are similar to the moral prerequisites of reasonable data collection. Data
collection centers on honesty (Mitchell et al., 2022b). Collecting information truthfully and
reporting it accurately are doing what the Bible says is right since it warns against deceit. Truth
has power, and that theme sounds in John 8:32, which reads, “you will come to know the truth,
and the truth will set you free” (The New Jerusalem Bible, 1985, John 8:32b). Quick book (QB),
tries to avoid the debilitating effects of data lies and distortions that have terrible repercussions
in the corporate world. This principle is coupled with integrity, which demands similarity
between actions and values. Integrity in data collection requires an objective way of acquiring
data, including the transparency of methods and ethical contact, which includes respecting
customers’ rights through surveillance and testing of their data in customer surveys and
eliminating biased sampling (Balboni & Francis, 2025b). The prophet Paul confirms this
intention in 2 Corinthians 8:21, “And so we have been careful to do right not only in the sight of
the Lord but also in the sight of people” (The New Jerusalem Bible, 1985, 2 Corinthians 8:21c).
This is what we are striving towards, what is commendable as far as the sight of the Lord, and to
appear
commendable in the sight of man.
IMPACTS OF INAPPROPRIATE DATA GATHERING 6
Stewardship offers as alternative, crucial insight. The message in Genesis 2:15 reminds
us of the type of improvisation believers have to maintain the trust reposed in them. Data is an
organization asset that needs to be handled with care. Gathering personal information
unsuitably or acquiring it without any protection against confidential data breaches is a
principle of stewardship (Sharda et al., 2024b). A Christian leader ensures that the data is
collected responsibly and kept securely. Lastly, accountability helps to establish the concept that
the collection of data is not merely a technical issue but also an ethical one. Christian leaders
acknowledge that they are answerable to the stakeholders and God. Colossians 3:23 says,
“Whatever your work is, put your heart into it as done for the Lord and not for human beings”
(The New Jerusalem Bible, 1985, Colossians 3:23d). This view elevates data aggregation to being
a matter of faithfulness and service so that practices are patriotic to God and society.
Lessons from Real-World Data Failures
There are some well-documented examples of what can go wrong when ethical
principles in data gathering are not considered. Some examples, such as the Cambridge
Analytica scandal, have revealed the vulnerability of personal information that may have been
scraped without consent to influence political results. This violation of confidence tarnished
Facebook’s image and raised worldwide concerns about data privacy (Miller-Naudé & Naudé,
2022b.) Similarly, and posting similar ethical concerns, the Target predictive analytics program
(accurately predicting customer pregnancies through subsequent purchasing behavior) even
disclosed information without prior approval. Much as it was effective in a technical sense, the
data collection process lacked consideration of the privacy and dignity of customers.
The 2017 data breach of Equifax is another example because it revealed the personal
data of millions of people. Although primarily a security-related issue, the incident
demonstrated the compounding effect of poor data stewardship and a lack of sufficient
IMPACTS OF INAPPROPRIATE DATA GATHERING 7
protection to contain the impact of improper data management (Camm et al., 2020). The cases
presented provide a good example of the severe repercussions that businesses that fail to
observe ethics in data practices can endure. In comparison, Christian leadership based on
biblical truth forms a limiting measure to stop such foibles because they promote respect,
fairness, and accountability.
Christian Leadership as a Safeguard for Organization Health
The inclusion of Christian values in data collection provides utilitarian and ethical
protection. Christian leaders demonstrate how to be transparent and foster cultures of integrity,
including how they expect data to be collected and reported honesty within the organization.
They also have peoples-oriented rather than profit-based priorities, as information stems from
real people whose dignity and privacy should not be violated.
Compliance with regulatory requirements, like GDPR or HIPPAA, is also not perceived as
a duty, but rather as a means of expressing the desire to be fair and ethical. By integrating
Christian values into analytics, leaders will ensure innovation is counterbalanced with
accountability (Mitchell et al., 2022b). These precautions prevent businesses from the
disastrous effect of inappropriate data collection and lead to sustainability and long-term trust.
By combining religion with analytics, Christian leaders create an understanding that business
procedures can be a representation of technical competence as well as divine knowledge.
Conclusion
Unprofessional data collection is one of the greatest threats to organizations in the
contemporary business world. Improper data collection compromises decision-making, trust,
and subjects the organizations you collect data from to various legal, financial, and cultural
repercussions due to faulty procedures, biased samples, and improper research ethics. Christian
leadership is an effective solution to these problems. Leaders stand on biblical principles of
IMPACTS OF INAPPROPRIATE DATA GATHERING 8
honesty, integrity, stewardship, and accountability when it comes to data gathering to ensure
that all efforts are communicated and that they adhere to biblical principles and ethics
regarding data. Real-life situations involving data misuse demonstrate the fact that non-
compliance with these principles can be a danger to a business and the spiritual and moral
health of its representatives, and that faith integration is a paradigm example of how analytics
can be used not only to attain business prosperity but also to be righteous and moral. The
overall effect of introducing Christian values in data collection is that analytics becomes a
stewardship process. In the process, organizations not only protect themselves against the
crippling effect but also magnify
God by modernizing their business practice to be more in line with truth and justice.
INPACTS OF INAPPROPRIATE DATA GATHERING 9
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