Code of Ethics Worksheet 1
Criterion 7: Demonstrate understanding of the societal and professional responsibilities in the area oftechnology
Criterion 9: Communicatetechnological information.
Select three out of the four scenarios below and discuss the ethical considerations.
You must make specific reference to the Australian Computer Society Code of Professional Conduct when justifying your opinions.
Scenario1
Jean, a statistical database programmer, is trying to write a large statistical program needed by her company. Programmers in the company are encouraged to write about their work and publish their algorithms in professional journals. After months of tedious programming, Jean has found herself stuck on several parts of the program. Her manager, not recognising the complexity of the task, wants the program finished within the next few days.
Not knowing how to solve the problem, Jean remembers that a co-worker had given her source code from his current work and from an early version of a commercial software package developed at another company. On studying these programs, she recognises two areas of code that can be directly incorporated into her own program. She uses segments of code both from her co-worker and the commercial package but does not tell anyone or mention it in the documentation. She finishes the project on time.
Scenario2
Three years ago Diane started her own consulting business. She has been so successful that she now employs several people and has many clients. Their consulting work involves advising how to network computers, designing database management systems and advising about security. Presently she is designing a database management system for the personnel office of a medium sized business. Diane has involved the clients in the design process, informing the CEO, the director of computing and the director of personnel about the progress of the system.
Dianne has described several options to the client. Because the system is going to cost more than they had planned, the client has opted for the less secure system. She believes the information they will be storing is extremely sensitive. It will include performance evaluations, medical records for filing insurance claims, salaries and so forth. With weak security, employees may be able to figure ways to get access to this data, not to mention the possibility of hackers from outside the company. Diane feels the security should be much stronger. She tries to explain the risks but the CEO decides that the less secure system will do. What should she do? Should she refuse to build the system?
Scenario3
Following a major change in the tax system, a software development company has produced a new software package that incorporates the latest tax laws and calculates taxes for both individuals and small businesses. The president of the company knows that the program has a number of bugs. He also believes that the first company to put this software on the market is likely to capture the largest market share. The company widely advertises the program. When users install the software it includes a disclaimer of responsibility for errors resulting from the use of the program.
The company expects that it will receive a number of complaints, queries and suggestions for modifications. The company plans to use these to make changes and eventually issue an updated, improved and debugged version. The president argues that everyone expects first versions to have bugs and will take proper precautions. A number of users file incorrect tax returns and are fined by the Australian Tax Office.
Scenario 4
A software consultant is negotiating a contract with a local community to design their traffic control system. He recommends they select the TCS system out of several available systems on the market. The consultant fails to mention that he is a major shareholder in the company producing the TCS software.