Instructor: Sidra Zubair

Date: 14/3/2024

Week#5
Ethics For IT
Workers And IT
Users
Relationships of IT
Workers
 Software Piracy:
• Using illegal copies of commercial
software.
Trade Secret:
Relationship b/w • A trade secret is information,
IT Workers and generally unknown to the public,
that a company has taken strong
Employers measures to keep confidential.
• Trade secrets can include the design
of new software code, hardware
designs, business plans, the design
of a user interface to a computer
program, and manufacturing
processes.
 • Business Software Alliance -
BSA is a trade group that
represents the world’s largest
software and hardware
Business Software manufacturers. Its mission is
Alliance -BSA to stop the unauthorized
copying of software produced
by its members. (
www.nopiracy.org)
 • It is an effort by an employee to
attract attention to a negligent,
illegal, unethical, abusive, or
dangerous act by a company that
threatens the public interest.
Whistle-Blowing Whistle-blowers often have
special information based on
their expertise or position within
the offending organization.
Relationship Between IT Workers and Clients

For example, an IT worker might

In such a relationship, each party agree to implement a new accounts
agrees to provide something of value payable software package that meets a
to the other. The IT worker provides client’s requirements. The client
hardware, software, or services at a provides compensation, access to key
certain cost and within a given time contacts, and perhaps a workspace.
frame.
 Problems

Breach of
Misinterpretation Fraud
Contract
 Consider the following frequent causes of problems in IT
projects:

• The customer changes the scope of the project or the

system requirements.

• Poor communication between customer and vendor leads

Causes of Problems to performance that does not meet expectations.

in IT Projects • The vendor delivers a system that meets customer

requirements, but a competitor comes out with a system that
offers more advanced and useful features.

• The customer fails to reveal information about legacy

systems or databases that make the new system extremely
difficult to implement.
 • IT workers can develop good
relationships with suppliers by
dealing fairly with them and not
making unreasonable demands.
Relationship • Suppliers strive to maintain positive
Between IT relationships with their customers in
order to make and increase sales.
Workers and • The Foreign Corrupt Practices
Suppliers Act (FCPA) makes it a crime to
bribe a foreign official, a foreign
political party official, or a
candidate for foreign political
office. The act applies to any U.S.
citizen or company and to any
company with shares listed on any
U.S. stock exchange.
• Bribes/Gifts
 Relationship • Professionals often feel a
degree of loyalty to the other
Between IT members of their profession.
Workers and Other • As a result, they are often
Professionals quick to help each other obtain
new positions but slow to
criticize each other in public.
 • Résumé Inflation, which
involves lying on a résumé by,
for example, claiming
competence in an IT skill that
is in high demand.
• Another ethical issue that can
Problems arise in relationships between
IT workers and other
professionals is the
inappropriate sharing of
corporate information.
 • The term IT user refers to a person who uses a
hardware or software product; the term
distinguishes end users from the IT workers
who develop, install, service, and support the
Relationship product.
• IT users need the product to deliver
Between IT organizational benefits or to increase their
productivity.
Workers and Users • IT workers also have a key responsibility to
establish an environment that supports ethical
behavior by users. Such an environment
discourages software piracy, minimizes the
inappropriate use of corporate computing
resources, and avoids the inappropriate sharing
of information.
 • Society expects members of a
Relationship profession to provide
significant benefits and to not
Between IT cause harm through their
Workers and actions.
Society • One approach to meeting this
expectation is to establish and
maintain professional
standards that protect the
public.
Common Ethical Issues
for IT Users
 • Software Piracy
• Inappropriate Use of
Computing Resources
Issues • Inappropriate Sharing of
Information
Supporting the Ethical
Practices of IT Users
 • Establishing Guidelines for Use of
Company Software
• Defining Appropriate Use of IT
Resources
Key Solutions • Structuring Information Systems
to Protect Data and Information
• Installing and Maintaining a
Corporate Firewall
• No one IT professional organization has emerged as preeminent, so there is no universal code of ethics
for IT workers. However, the existence of such organizations is useful in a field that is rapidly
growing and changing.

Professional Organizations
 Public:

• Actions wise ethics may have two ways

i-e, Public and Client & Employer
• Public: Software Engineer shall act must
be in public interest.
IEEE Code
of Ethics
Client & Employer:

• Software Engineer act in that manner

that client and employer must be
satisfied on it.
IEEE Code of Ethics
Product:
• Software Engineer ensure that their
products and related modifications must
meet the highest professional standards
possible
 Judgment

• Software Engineers must maintain

integrity and independence in their
professional judgement.
IEEE Code
Management
of Ethics
• Software Engineering managers and
leaders shall subscribe to and promote
ethical approach to management of
software development and maintenance.
 Profession

• Software engineers shall advance the integrity and

reputation of the profession consistent with the public
interest.

Colleagues

IEEE Code • Software engineers shall be fair to and supportive of

their colleagues.
of Ethics
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.
 • Act in public interest
• Act in interest of client and employees
Principles of • Produce quality product
IEEE Code of • Maintain independent judgement
Ethics • Manage Ethically
• Protect integrity of professions
• Support Colleagues
• Pursue lifelong learning
ACM CODE OF
ETHICS
 Contribute
• Contribute to society and to human well-
being, acknowledging that all people are
1. General Ethical stakeholders in computing.
Principles: A
computing Avoid
profession should
• Avoid Harm

Be
• Be honest and trustworthy
 Be fair and take action not to
Be discriminate.

Respect the work required to produce

Respect new ideas, inventions, creative works,
and computing artifacts.

Cont…
Respect Respect privacy

Honor Honor Confidentiality

 2. Professional Responsibilities

STRIVE TO ACHIEVE HIGH MAINTAIN HIGH

KNOW AND RESPECT
QUALITY IN BOTH THE STANDARDS OF
A COMPUTING EXISTING RULES
PROCESSES AND PROFESSIONAL
PROFESSIONAL SHOULD: PERTAINING TO
PRODUCTS OF COMPETENCE, CONDUCT
PROFESSIONAL WORK.
PROFESSIONAL WORK. AND ETHICAL PRACTICE

GIVE COMPREHENSIVE
AND THOROUGH
ACCEPT AND PROVIDE EVALUATIONS OF
PERFORM WORK ONLY IN
APPROPRIATE COMPUTER SYSTEMS AND
AREAS OF COMPETENCE.
PROFESSIONAL REVIEWS. THEIR IMPACTS,
INCLUDING ANALYSIS OF
POSSIBLE RISKS.
 Cont…

Foster public Access computing and Design and implement

awareness and communication systems that are
understanding of resources only when robustly and usably
computing related authorized or when secure.
technologies and their compelled by the
consequences. public good.
3. Professional Leadership Principles

A computing professional especially one acting as leader should…

• Ensure that the public good is the central concern during all professional computing work.
• Articulate, encourage acceptance of, and evaluate fulfillment of social responsibilities by
members of the organization or group.
• Manage personnel and resources to enhance the quality of working life.
 Cont…

Use care when Recognize and take Articulate, apply, and Create opportunities for
modifying or retiring special care of systems support policies and members of the
systems. that become integrated processes that reflect the organization or group to
into the infrastructure of principles of the code. grow as professionals.
the society
 As an ACM member I will…

4.
Compliance 1. Uphold, promote and respect the
with the Code principles of the Code.

2. Treat variations of the code as

inconsistent with membership in the ACM.
 • The audit committee and
members of the internal audit
team have a major role in
ensuring that both the IT
Role of Audit organization and IT users are
Committee in compliance with
organizational guidelines
and policies as well as various
legal and regulatory practices.