Computing Ethics

Computer Ethics:

The Ten Commandments of Computer Ethics are very similar to the Biblical commandments. The Computer Ethics Institute came up with the first three right off the bat, namely, thou shalt not use your computer to harm others, interfere with another's work or snoop in someone else's files.

Computer Ethics

2.1 Professionalism Takes More than Knowledge

“Professionalism is a way of thinking and living rather than an accumulation of learning.” Think: What does it take to be a doctor? It’s not just by going to medical school.

A profession isn’t just what you do, it’s who you are. We say that somebody “is” a doctor. Here, “doctor” is a noun (“Doctoring the books” is something different!). Likewise, we don’t just “engineer” (verb), we also are engineers (noun).

Ø A profession is who you are, not a contract

“Shame on the engineer who regards their professional function as a business transaction to be judged by the question: ‘Just what do I get out of it?’”

What “professions” have a reputation for being self-centered and selfish?

Ø Life as a professional: activities

You perform “professional activity of a type carrying high individual responsibility, requiring application of special skills to activities that are predominantly intellectual and varied rather than routine and normal.”

How are an engineer’s activities “varied”?

Life as a professional: motivation

“Motivation for service takes first place over consideration of reward.”

Life as a professional: joy and pride

“Motivation … implies joy and pride in the work to be done, and self-imposed standards.”If you don’t take joy and pride in computer science, then you should look for another line of work.Companies and customers are also entitled to impose (secondary) standards of excellence.

Life as a professional: social duty

You have a “social duty, fulfilled through guarding the ideals and standards of the profession, by advancing it …, by sharing advances …, by rendering gratuitous public service, all as a return to society.”“Giving back” to society

2.2 Four traits of a professional

– Varied activities requiring special skills

– Society-centric motivation

– Personal standards of excellence

– Giving back to society

Ø When you put many professionals together, what do you have?

A profession isn’t just defined by who you are. A profession is also something you are part of. “Most professional software engineers adopt an institutional view of the organizations of the profession: they perceive them as bodies representing the profession and therefore deserving, even requiring, the loyalty of each software engineer as an expression of his identity as a professional software engineer.”

Ø Part of being a professional is behaving ethically

“Ethics means something more than ‘law’ and ‘morals’; it carries an additional connotation of ‘rightness’.”

– Breaking the law: can earn a fine or jail time

– Breaking a moral: can ruin your reputation

– Breaking an ethic: can ruin your conscience

It’s possible to break all three, simultaneously!

Trait # 1 of a professional: Seriousness

– Serious about job

– The job is only a job. A means to an end

Trait # 2 of a professional: Wanting to do better

– Exhibit a never-ending quest to improve their performance in every variable, every project, every relationship, and every detail.

Trait # 3 of a professional: Dealing with the Unexpected

– Stuff happens, things change, and the true professional rises to the occasion

Trait # 4 of a professional: Communication Skills

– Clear

– Concise

– Confident

Trait # 5 of a professional: Enthusiasm

– Attitude is everything. Those who exhibit enthusiasm for what they do and greet each day with a positive attitude inevitably become a leader

Trait # 6 of a professional: Helpfulness

– Understand that real success in the workplace requires teamwork

– Always ready to lend a hand

– Make a suggestion

– Offer a compliment when it’s deserved

Trait # 7 of a professional: Taking the Initiative

– Takes the initiative to get things done

Trait # 8 of a professional: Cool under Pressure

– Level headed and calm

– Cheerful demeanor-even under stressful times

Trait # 9 of a professional: Remains Focused

– Stay focused on the task at hand and the goal ahead

– Navigate through obstacles or setbacks but never lose sight of where they headed

Trait # 10 of a professional: Don’t Follow, Lead

– True Professionals aren’t faint of heart

– Analyze the situation and willing to take new paths and try new solutions

– That’s why they call it LEADERSHIP!

Ø Laws vs Morals vs Ethics

– Speeding on Motorway

Illegal, moral (“everyone” does it), maybe ethical

– Speeding within city

Illegal, immoral, unethical

– What might a software engineer do that is…

Illegal, immoral, unethical ?

Legal, immoral, unethical ?

Legal, moral, unethical ?

2.3 IEEE Code of Ethics: Actions

– 1. PUBLIC - Software engineers shall act consistently with the public interest.

– 2. CLIENT AND EMPLOYER - Software engineers shall act in a manner that is in the best interests of their client and employer consistent with the public interest.

IEEE Code of Ethics: Products

– 3. PRODUCT - Software engineers shall ensure that their products and related modifications meet the highest professional standards possible.

IEEE Code of Ethics: Hierarchy

– 4. JUDGMENT - Software engineers shall maintain integrity and independence in their professional judgment.

– 5. MANAGEMENT - Software engineering managers and leaders shall subscribe to and promote an ethical approach to the management of software development and maintenance.

IEEE Code of Ethics: Peers

– 6. PROFESSION - Software engineers shall advance the integrity and reputation of the profession consistent with the public interest.

– 7. COLLEAGUES - Software engineers shall be fair to and supportive of their colleagues.

IEEE Code of Ethics: Self

– 8. SELF - Software engineers shall participate in lifelong learning regarding the practice of their profession and shall promote an ethical approach to the practice of the profession.

2.4 8 Principles of IEEE Code of Ethics

– Act in public interest

– Act in interest of clients and employers

– Produce quality products

– Maintain independent judgment

– Manage ethically

– Protect integrity of profession

– Support colleagues

– Pursue lifelong learning

Ø Scenario #1

– You are the owner of a software engineering company. Your employees (engineers) want you to pay for them to attend training.

– How would you respond in a way that is legal, moral, and ethical?

Ø Scenario #2

– You are the owner of a software engineering company. Your employees (engineers) want you to let them do pro bono work for a local non-profit organization on company time.

– How would you respond in a way that islegal, moral, and ethical?

Ø Scenario #3

– You are the head of a computer science department at a university. Your boss(a “dean”) wants you to find a way to tweak your curriculum so undergrads are more likely to choose your department for their major.

– How would you respond in a way that islegal, moral, and ethical?

Ø Scenario #4

– You are a software engineer working at a large publicly-traded corporation, where a colleague invents a new kind of compiler. Your managers see it as a huge potential cash cow.

– How would you respond in a way that islegal, moral, and ethical?

Ø Scenario #5

– You are a software engineer at a company where management routinely encourages you and your colleagues to use pirated software.

– How would you respond in a way that islegal, moral, and ethical?