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When is deception, rather than outright lying, justified? Suppose someone asks you "did you go to the shop yesterday" and you reply "I've gone to the shop", then that's one example of what I mean, though I suppose it may actually be a lie anyway

The most widely accepted definition of lying is the following: “A lie is a statement made by one who does not believe it with the intention that someone else shall be led to believe it” (Isenberg 1973, 248) (cf. “[lying is] making a statement believed to be false, with the intention of getting another to accept it as true”

But I might mean lying by omission and acts of deception in general. Anyway, my question isn't about the definition of lying, though perhaps it should be, but when deception is justified.

What is the practical difference beteen telling a lie and deception? When is the latter but not the former justified?

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    Even if no false statement is uttered, deliberate efforts made to make people believe something false are functionaly not different from lying. Leaving a murder weapon in your rivals bedroom for someone to find it and come to the conclusion they are a murderer isn't functionaly different from accusing your rival directly. If anything, it's more effective than a lie. So your question isn't much different from "when is it justified to lie?", which can't be answered as is because there are so many different school of thoughts about morality. Kant would say "never", Betham would say "depends".
    – armand
    Commented Sep 19 at 0:20
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    Whenever lying is morally justified if one's ethics allows for that, like utilitarianism. It accomplishes the same ends, avoiding harm, protecting privacy, etc. Levine in Community standards of deception makes "deception is perceived to be ethical when it prevents unnecessary harm" a subtitle. Even if not, many authors rank deceptive impressions as less unethical than lying, and omissions as less unethical than impressions (for lesser "breach of trust"), see Alexander, Deception in Morality and Law.
    – Conifold
    Commented Sep 19 at 0:20
  • so there just be more occasions when it is justified @Conifold i get that, i think
    – user71399
    Commented Sep 19 at 0:38
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    This question is similar to: When is ok to tell a lie?. If you believe it’s different, please edit the question, make it clear how it’s different and/or how the answers on that question are not helpful for your problem. I don't think deception is significantly different from lying, so answers about lying should be equivalent.
    – tkruse
    Commented Sep 19 at 14:41
  • that's the question, if deception is signicantly different @tkruse
    – user71399
    Commented Sep 19 at 15:48

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