1. Be accurate in stating the characteristics of software on which they work, avoiding not only false claims but also claims that might reasonably be supposed to be speculative, vacuous, deceptive, misleading, or doubtful.
2. Software Engineering Code of Ethics and Professional Practice (Full Version)PREAMBLEComputers have a central and growing role in commerce, industry, government, medicine, education, entertainment and society at large.
3. In particular, those managing or leading software engineers shall, as appropriate:Ensure good management for any project on which they work, including effective procedures for promotion of quality and reduction of risk.
4. Promote public knowledge of software engineering.
5. In particular, software engineers shall continually endeavor to:Further their knowledge of developments in the analysis, specification, design, development, maintenance and testing of software and related documents, together with the management of the development process.
6. Treat all forms of software maintenance with the same professionalism as new development.
7. Extend software engineering knowledge by appropriate participation in professional organizations, meetings and publications.
8. In particular, software engineers shall, as appropriate:Strive for high quality, acceptable cost and a reasonable schedule, ensuring significant tradeoffs are clear to and accepted by the employer and the client, and are available for consideration by the user and the public.
9. Disclose to appropriate persons or authorities any actual or potential danger to the user, the public, or the environment, that they reasonably believe to be associated with software or related documents.
10. Not knowingly use software that is obtained or retained either illegally or unethically.
1. Take responsibility for detecting, correcting, and reporting errors in software and associated documents on which they work.
2. Ensure an appropriate method is used for any project on which they work or propose to work.
3. Ensure adequate documentation, including significant problems discovered and solutions adopted, for any project on which they work.
4. Ensure an appropriate method is used for any project on which they work or propose to work.
5. Ensure realistic quantitative estimates of cost, scheduling, personnel, quality and outcomes on any project on which they work or propose to work and provide an uncertainty assessment of these estimates.
6. Keep private any confidential information gained in their professional work, where such confidentiality is consistent with the public interest and consistent with the law.
7. Be accurate in stating the characteristics of software on which they work, avoiding not only false claims but also claims that might reasonably be supposed to be speculative, vacuous, deceptive, misleading, or doubtful.
8. Ensure that they are qualified for any project on which they work or propose to work by an appropriate combination of education and training, and experience.
9. Work to follow professional standards, when available, that are most appropriate for the task at hand, departing from these only when ethically or technically justified.
10. Assign work only after taking into account appropriate contributions of education and experience tempered with a desire to further that education and experience.
1. PRINCIPLESPrinciple 1: PUBLICSoftware engineers shall act consistently with the public interest.
2. Principle 4: JUDGMENTSoftware engineers shall maintain integrity and independence in their professional judgment.
3. Ensure that software engineers are informed of standards before being held to them.
4. Not unfairly intervene in the career of any colleague; however, concern for the employer, the client or public interest may compel software engineers, in good faith, to question the competence of a colleague.
5. Ensure that software engineers know the employer's policies and procedures for protecting passwords, files and information that is confidential to the employer or confidential to others.
6. Principle 7: COLLEAGUESSoftware engineers shall be fair to and supportive of their colleagues.
7. However, even in this generality, the Code provides support for software engineers and managers of software engineers who need to take positive action in a specific case by documenting the ethical stance of the profession.
8. Principle 3: PRODUCTSoftware engineers shall ensure that their products and related modifications meet the highest professional standards possible.
9. In particular, software engineers shall continually endeavor to:Further their knowledge of developments in the analysis, specification, design, development, maintenance and testing of software and related documents, together with the management of the development process.
10. Attract potential software engineers only by full and accurate description of the conditions of employment.
1. Ensure that clients, employers, and supervisors know of the software engineer's commitment to this Code of ethics, and the subsequent ramifications of such commitment.
2. The Code helps to define those actions that are ethically improper to request of a software engineer or teams of software engineers.
3. The Code contains eight Principles related to the behavior of and decisions made by professional software engineers, including practitioners, educators, managers, supervisors and policy makers, as well as trainees and students of the profession.
4. In accordance with that commitment, software engineers shall adhere to the following Code of Ethics and Professional Practice.
5. Express concerns to the people involved when significant violations of this Code are detected unless this is impossible, counter-productive, or dangerous.
6. However, even in this generality, the Code provides support for software engineers and managers of software engineers who need to take positive action in a specific case by documenting the ethical stance of the profession.
7. The Code provides an ethical foundation to which individuals within teams and the team as a whole can appeal.
8. Support, as members of a profession, other software engineers striving to follow this Code.
9. The Code is not simply for adjudicating the nature of questionable acts; it also has an important educational function.
10. The Code prescribes these as obligations of anyone claiming to be or aspiring to be a software engineer.
1. In particular, software engineers shall, as appropriate:Help develop an organizational environment favorable to acting ethically.
2. Identify, define and address ethical, economic, cultural, legal and environmental issues related to work projects.
3. As this Code expresses the consensus of the profession on ethical issues, it is a means to educate both the public and aspiring professionals about the ethical obligations of all software engineers.
4. The Code is not a simple ethical algorithm that generates ethical decisions.
5. Promote no interest adverse to their employer or client, unless a higher ethical concern is being compromised; in that case, inform the employer or another appropriate authority of the ethical concern.
6. Be careful to use only accurate data derived by ethical and lawful means, and use it only in ways properly authorized.
7. Ethical tensions can best be addressed by thoughtful consideration of fundamental principles, rather than blind reliance on detailed regulations.
8. Not punish anyone for expressing ethical concerns about a project.
9. However, even in this generality, the Code provides support for software engineers and managers of software engineers who need to take positive action in a specific case by documenting the ethical stance of the profession.
10. Promote no interest adverse to their employer or client, unless a higher ethical concern is being compromised; in that case, inform the employer or another appropriate authority of the ethical concern.