Background. The socialization of personality in the modern world occurs on the Internet and social networks, transforming traditional methods of communication on the basis of ethical standards for constructing interpersonal Internet communication. The basic rules are: personal responsibility for actions performed on the network, including illegal actions; respect and equality of partners; confidentiality; copyright protection; and privacy. The relevance of the problem of ethical standards in Internet communication in adolescence is due to its importance for youth and their formation of moral consciousness as a developmental task.

Objective. This study is aimed at identifying attitudes toward ethical standards of Internet communication among youth users with different levels of moral consciousness. Our research goals were: 1) elaboration and testing of the author's technique “Ethical Dilemmas in Internet Communication” (EDI); 2) discovering attitudes towards ethical standards in Internet communication and strategies for resolving ethical dilemmas; and 3) study of the relationship between the level of the moral consciousness of respondents and their orientation toward following the basic ethical standards in Internet communication.

Design. The methods used were the author’s EDI technique, including ethical dilemmas, and the questionnaire "Justice-Care" (S.V. Molchanov). The sample consisted of 61 subjects.

Results. We found an ambiguous attitude by users of the Internet network toward the ethical standards of communication and a differentiated attitude toward following ethical standards. A high level of willingness to follow the norm was identified for copyright protection, but a low one for respecting the inviolability of personal life and taking personal responsibility for actions performed on the network. The strategies for solving ethical dilemmas in Internet communication were clear. The hypothesis about the connection of the level of moral competence and the attitude toward following basic ethical standards in Internet communication was verified.