uni/COMP2410/a1.html

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        <TITLE>Professional ethics and Information Technology</TITLE>
        <META name="Author" content="Andrew Pollock">
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        <H1>Professional ethics and Information Technology</H1>

        <H2>Introduction</H2>
        <P>
                This essay discusses the principles of ethics, both in their specific
                application to the Information Technology profession, and to their
                more general application to professional disciplines. In particular
                the Codes of Ethics of the <EM>Australian Computer Society</EM> (ACS),
                <EM>Association for Computing Machinery</EM> (ACM), and the
                <EM>Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers</EM> (IEEE) are
                examined. The <EM>Australian National University</EM> (ANU) code 
                <EM>Academic Honesty in Learning and Teaching</EM> is also examined to
                highlight similarities between issues raised and those raised by the
                abovementioned professional societies. Finally, two real-world
                scenarios will be presented and discussed within the context of
                professional ethics.
        </P>

        <H2>Generic principles</H2>
        <P>
                There are a number of generic principles common to the various Codes
                of Ethics. These principles are not necessarily specific to the field
                of Information Technology, but may relevant to many professional
                disciplines.
        </P>

        <P>
                <DL>
                        <DT><STRONG>Essential moral behavior</STRONG></DT>
                        <DD>
                                The various Codes of Ethics all contain directives regarding
                                what one could consider basic moral behavior. Values such as
                                honesty, integrity, are all specifically referred to. Actions
                                must also be in the public or community interest, which means
                                that members of the various socities should take the wider
                                social implications of their actions into consideration.
                        </DD>

                        <DT><STRONG>Competence</STRONG></DT>
                        <DD>
                                All the Codes of Conduct and Ethics highly value competence.
                                This is important, as incompetent workmanship can have a poor
                                reflection on the profession in general, regardless of what that
                                profession is.
                        </DD>

                        <DT><STRONG>Professional Development</STRONG></DT>
                        <DD>
                                For the same reasons as competence, ongoing profeessional
                                development is of paramount importance. All the societies Codes
                                reviewed specifically mention ongoing personal development, as
                                well as assisting fellow members to further their development.
                        </DD>

                        <DT><STRONG>Fairness, equality and objectivity</STRONG></DT>
                        <DD>
                                All of the societies Codes examined specifically refer to
                                conducting oneself in an indiscriminate manner. The ACS <EM>Code
                                of Professional Conduct and Professional Practice</EM> states:
                                <BLOCKQUOTE>Be objective, impartial and free of conflicts of
                                interest in the performance of your professional
                                duties.</BLOCKQUOTE>
                                The ACM specifically states that equality, tolerance and respect
                                for others are important and that violations of this policy will
                                not be tolerated, in their Code of Ethics. The IEEE's Code of
                                Ethics also states that members agee <BLOCKQUOTE>to treat fairly all
                                persons regardless of such factors as race, religion, gender,
                                disability, age or national origin.</BLOCKQUOTE>
                        </DD>
                </DL>
        </P>

        <H2>Principles specific to Information Technology</H2>
        <P>
                There are a number of other principles stated in the various Codes of
                Conduct that are more specific to the field of Information Technology,
                because of the technical nature of the profession, or because they
                relate to technological ethical issues.
        </P>

        <P>
                <DL>
                        <DT><STRONG>Intellectual Property</STRONG></DT>
                        <DD>
                                Whilst not strictly related to Informationl Technology, this is
                                certainly an issue that crops up more often within this field.
                                The ACM Code of Ethics states that property rights including
                                copyrights and patents should be honoured, and proper credit
                                should be given for intellectual property. The IEEE Code of
                                Ethics states that members should credit properly the
                                contributions of others. Interestingly, neither the ACS Code of
                                Ethics or Code of Professional Conduct and Professional Practice
                                makes a reference to "Intellectual Property", but the latter
                                does state that information is the property of the client, and
                                must not be distributed freely.
                        </DD>

                        <DT><STRONG>Promotion of the profession</STRONG></DT>
                        <DD>
                                Again, one could substitute the name of the profession for any
                                other, however, the ACS Code of Ethics and Code of Professional
                                Conduct specifically mention promoting and protecting the image,
                                and professionalism of Information Technology and the society in
                                general.
                        </DD>

                        <DT><STRONG>Authorised access to computing resources</STRONG></DT>
                        <DD>
                                The ACM Code of Conduct specifically mentions "trespassing and
                                unauthorised use of a computer or communication system". It goes
                                on to say that individuals have the right to restrict access
                                insofar as it does not discriminate unethically (as discussed
                                earlier).
                        </DD>
                </DL>
        </P>

        <H2>Similarities to ANU code</H2>

        <P>
                Whilst having nothing specifically to do with Information Technology,
                The ANU code on <EM>Academic Honesty in Learning and Teaching</EM> has
                a some common points to those raised in the Codes of Conduct for
                the various professional societies examined.
        </P>

        <P>
                The most significant common point is of course the moral value of
                being honest. The code of practice defines academic honesty, and also
                goes on to discuss originality and plargiarism. This is identical in
                spirit to the intellectual properties clauses of Codes of Ethics for
                the ACS and ACM.
        </P>

        <P>
                The ANU code also defines the roles and responsibilities of various
                levels of academics within the University, similar to how the various
                socities Codes state that members should assist other members to
                further themselves to be better members. Similarly, University
                academics should guide students in matters of academic honesty.
        </P>

        <H2>Case studies</H2>

        <P>
                In conclusion two case studies will be discussed. The first, one is a
                hypothetical ANU student who attained an IT degree with a lot of
                assistance from his/her friends, doing a lot of collaboration on
                assignment work, and getting good marks for them, but average marks
                for examinations. This student then attains employment somewhere in
                Canberra.
        </P>

        <P>
                The second example is an employee working on a application project. He
                gets a brilliant idea outside of the scope of the existing project
                that he believes will make an improvement to this application, and
                other related applications. The contract he has signed states that the
                work carried out on the project belongs to this organisation he is
                working for.
        </P>

        <H3>The average student who had a lot of help from his friends</H3>

        <P>
                The negative consequence of this scenario is that this student has
                attained an IT degree that isn't necessarily indicative of his/her own
                abilities. This is most likely going to become evident when the
                employee is unable to conduct themselves competently in their field of
                employment. The possible victims of this negative scenario are both
                the student/employee and the organization employing him/her.
        </P>

        <P>
                Eventually it is going to come to the point where the employee has to
                gain sufficient competence to carry out his/her employment, or the
                employer has to cease employing the student, due to their
                incompetence. This ultimately boils down to misrepresentation, in that
                the student didn't accurately represent their competence to the
                employer in the first place.
        </P>

        <P>
                The negative repercussions could be more significant depending on the
                nature of the employment of the student. If the student was engaged in
                a role that may have a direct impact on the public, this incompetence
                could, in the worst case, directly impact on other peoples lives.
        </P>

        <H3>The employee with the work-related brilliant idea</H3>

        <P>
                In the case of the employee with the brilliant idea, if it is just an
                idea, the organisation he works for cannot readily claim ownership of
                it. If the employee develops anything on company time or resources,
                based on that idea, then it rightly becomes property of the
                organisation. If this is the case, and the employee wishes to take the
                idea outside of the organisation, the only ethical thing to do would
                be to seek permission from the employer to do so. Anything less would
                constitute theft of the organisation's intellectual property.
        </P>
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1	<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN"
2	"http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/loose.dtd">
3	<HTML>
4
5	<HEAD>
6	<TITLE>Professional ethics and Information Technology</TITLE>
7	<META name="Author" content="Andrew Pollock">
8	</HEAD>
9
10	<BODY bgcolor="white">
11	<H1>Professional ethics and Information Technology</H1>
12
13	<H2>Introduction</H2>
14	<P>
15	This essay discusses the principles of ethics, both in their specific
16	application to the Information Technology profession, and to their
17	more general application to professional disciplines. In particular
18	the Codes of Ethics of the <EM>Australian Computer Society</EM> (ACS),
19	<EM>Association for Computing Machinery</EM> (ACM), and the
20	<EM>Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers</EM> (IEEE) are
21	examined. The <EM>Australian National University</EM> (ANU) code
22	<EM>Academic Honesty in Learning and Teaching</EM> is also examined to
23	highlight similarities between issues raised and those raised by the
24	abovementioned professional societies. Finally, two real-world
25	scenarios will be presented and discussed within the context of
26	professional ethics.
27	</P>
28
29	<H2>Generic principles</H2>
30	<P>
31	There are a number of generic principles common to the various Codes
32	of Ethics. These principles are not necessarily specific to the field
33	of Information Technology, but may relevant to many professional
34	disciplines.
35	</P>
36
37	<P>
38	<DL>
39	<DT><STRONG>Essential moral behavior</STRONG></DT>
40	<DD>
41	The various Codes of Ethics all contain directives regarding
42	what one could consider basic moral behavior. Values such as
43	honesty, integrity, are all specifically referred to. Actions
44	must also be in the public or community interest, which means
45	that members of the various socities should take the wider
46	social implications of their actions into consideration.
47	</DD>
48
49	<DT><STRONG>Competence</STRONG></DT>
50	<DD>
51	All the Codes of Conduct and Ethics highly value competence.
52	This is important, as incompetent workmanship can have a poor
53	reflection on the profession in general, regardless of what that
54	profession is.
55	</DD>
56
57	<DT><STRONG>Professional Development</STRONG></DT>
58	<DD>
59	For the same reasons as competence, ongoing profeessional
60	development is of paramount importance. All the societies Codes
61	reviewed specifically mention ongoing personal development, as
62	well as assisting fellow members to further their development.
63	</DD>
64
65	<DT><STRONG>Fairness, equality and objectivity</STRONG></DT>
66	<DD>
67	All of the societies Codes examined specifically refer to
68	conducting oneself in an indiscriminate manner. The ACS <EM>Code
69	of Professional Conduct and Professional Practice</EM> states:
70	<BLOCKQUOTE>Be objective, impartial and free of conflicts of
71	interest in the performance of your professional
72	duties.</BLOCKQUOTE>
73	The ACM specifically states that equality, tolerance and respect
74	for others are important and that violations of this policy will
75	not be tolerated, in their Code of Ethics. The IEEE's Code of
76	Ethics also states that members agee <BLOCKQUOTE>to treat fairly all
77	persons regardless of such factors as race, religion, gender,
78	disability, age or national origin.</BLOCKQUOTE>
79	</DD>
80	</DL>
81	</P>
82
83	<H2>Principles specific to Information Technology</H2>
84	<P>
85	There are a number of other principles stated in the various Codes of
86	Conduct that are more specific to the field of Information Technology,
87	because of the technical nature of the profession, or because they
88	relate to technological ethical issues.
89	</P>
90
91	<P>
92	<DL>
93	<DT><STRONG>Intellectual Property</STRONG></DT>
94	<DD>
95	Whilst not strictly related to Informationl Technology, this is
96	certainly an issue that crops up more often within this field.
97	The ACM Code of Ethics states that property rights including
98	copyrights and patents should be honoured, and proper credit
99	should be given for intellectual property. The IEEE Code of
100	Ethics states that members should credit properly the
101	contributions of others. Interestingly, neither the ACS Code of
102	Ethics or Code of Professional Conduct and Professional Practice
103	makes a reference to "Intellectual Property", but the latter
104	does state that information is the property of the client, and
105	must not be distributed freely.
106	</DD>
107
108	<DT><STRONG>Promotion of the profession</STRONG></DT>
109	<DD>
110	Again, one could substitute the name of the profession for any
111	other, however, the ACS Code of Ethics and Code of Professional
112	Conduct specifically mention promoting and protecting the image,
113	and professionalism of Information Technology and the society in
114	general.
115	</DD>
116
117	<DT><STRONG>Authorised access to computing resources</STRONG></DT>
118	<DD>
119	The ACM Code of Conduct specifically mentions "trespassing and
120	unauthorised use of a computer or communication system". It goes
121	on to say that individuals have the right to restrict access
122	insofar as it does not discriminate unethically (as discussed
123	earlier).
124	</DD>
125	</DL>
126	</P>
127
128	<H2>Similarities to ANU code</H2>
129
130	<P>
131	Whilst having nothing specifically to do with Information Technology,
132	The ANU code on <EM>Academic Honesty in Learning and Teaching</EM> has
133	a some common points to those raised in the Codes of Conduct for
134	the various professional societies examined.
135	</P>
136
137	<P>
138	The most significant common point is of course the moral value of
139	being honest. The code of practice defines academic honesty, and also
140	goes on to discuss originality and plargiarism. This is identical in
141	spirit to the intellectual properties clauses of Codes of Ethics for
142	the ACS and ACM.
143	</P>
144
145	<P>
146	The ANU code also defines the roles and responsibilities of various
147	levels of academics within the University, similar to how the various
148	socities Codes state that members should assist other members to
149	further themselves to be better members. Similarly, University
150	academics should guide students in matters of academic honesty.
151	</P>
152
153	<H2>Case studies</H2>
154
155	<P>
156	In conclusion two case studies will be discussed. The first, one is a
157	hypothetical ANU student who attained an IT degree with a lot of
158	assistance from his/her friends, doing a lot of collaboration on
159	assignment work, and getting good marks for them, but average marks
160	for examinations. This student then attains employment somewhere in
161	Canberra.
162	</P>
163
164	<P>
165	The second example is an employee working on a application project. He
166	gets a brilliant idea outside of the scope of the existing project
167	that he believes will make an improvement to this application, and
168	other related applications. The contract he has signed states that the
169	work carried out on the project belongs to this organisation he is
170	working for.
171	</P>
172
173	<H3>The average student who had a lot of help from his friends</H3>
174
175	<P>
176	The negative consequence of this scenario is that this student has
177	attained an IT degree that isn't necessarily indicative of his/her own
178	abilities. This is most likely going to become evident when the
179	employee is unable to conduct themselves competently in their field of
180	employment. The possible victims of this negative scenario are both
181	the student/employee and the organization employing him/her.
182	</P>
183
184	<P>
185	Eventually it is going to come to the point where the employee has to
186	gain sufficient competence to carry out his/her employment, or the
187	employer has to cease employing the student, due to their
188	incompetence. This ultimately boils down to misrepresentation, in that
189	the student didn't accurately represent their competence to the
190	employer in the first place.
191	</P>
192
193	<P>
194	The negative repercussions could be more significant depending on the
195	nature of the employment of the student. If the student was engaged in
196	a role that may have a direct impact on the public, this incompetence
197	could, in the worst case, directly impact on other peoples lives.
198	</P>
199
200	<H3>The employee with the work-related brilliant idea</H3>
201
202	<P>
203	In the case of the employee with the brilliant idea, if it is just an
204	idea, the organisation he works for cannot readily claim ownership of
205	it. If the employee develops anything on company time or resources,
206	based on that idea, then it rightly becomes property of the
207	organisation. If this is the case, and the employee wishes to take the
208	idea outside of the organisation, the only ethical thing to do would
209	be to seek permission from the employer to do so. Anything less would
210	constitute theft of the organisation's intellectual property.
211	</P>
212	</BODY>
213
214	</HTML>