1. Because of their roles in developing software systems, software engineers have significant opportunities to do good or cause harm, to enable others to do good or cause harm, or to influence others to do good or cause harm.

2. Work to develop software and related documents that respect the privacy of those who will be affected by that software.

3. Extend software engineering knowledge by appropriate participation in professional organizations, meetings and publications.

4. These Principles should influence software engineers to consider broadly who is affected by their work; to examine if they and their colleagues are treating other human beings with due respect; to consider how the public, if reasonably well informed, would view their decisions; to analyze how the least empowered will be affected by their decisions; and to consider whether their acts would be judged worthy of the ideal professional working as a software engineer.

5. These situations require the software engineer to use ethical judgment to act in a manner which is most consistent with the spirit of the Code of Ethics and Professional Practice, given the circumstances.

6. In accordance with that commitment, software engineers shall adhere to the following Code of Ethics and Professional Practice.

7. Moderate the interests of the software engineer, the employer, the client and the users with the public good.

8. Ensure that software engineers are informed of standards before being held to them.

9. Not knowingly use software that is obtained or retained either illegally or unethically.

10. Work to develop software and related documents that respect the privacy of those who will be affected by that software.

1. Ensure adequate documentation, including significant problems discovered and solutions adopted, for any project on which they work.

2. 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.

3. Assign work only after taking into account appropriate contributions of education and experience tempered with a desire to further that education and experience.

4. Improve their knowledge of this Code, its interpretation, and its application to their work.

5. The ultimate effect of the work should be to the public good.

6. In particular, software engineers shall, as appropriate:Accept full responsibility for their own work.

7. Improve their knowledge of relevant standards and the law governing the software and related documents on which they work.

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. 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.

10. Take responsibility for detecting, correcting, and reporting errors in software and associated documents on which they work.

1. PRINCIPLESPrinciple 1: PUBLICSoftware engineers shall act consistently with the public interest.

2. Software engineers are those who contribute by direct participation or by teaching, to the analysis, specification, design, development, certification, maintenance and testing of software systems.

3. Principle 8: SELFSoftware engineers shall participate in lifelong learning regarding the practice of their profession and shall promote an ethical approach to the practice of the profession.

4. 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.

5. In accordance with that commitment, software engineers shall adhere to the following Code of Ethics and Professional Practice.

6. 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.

7. In particular, software engineers shall, as appropriate:Help develop an organizational environment favorable to acting ethically.

8. In particular, software engineers shall, as appropriate:Temper all technical judgments by the need to support and maintain human values.

9. 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.

10. Principle 4: JUDGMENTSoftware engineers shall maintain integrity and independence in their professional judgment.

1. Improve their knowledge of this Code, its interpretation, and its application to their work.

2. 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.

3. The Code is not simply for adjudicating the nature of questionable acts; it also has an important educational function.

4. Not ask a software engineer to do anything inconsistent with this Code.

5. In particular, software engineers shall, as appropriate:Encourage colleagues to adhere to this Code.

6. Support, as members of a profession, other software engineers striving to follow this Code.

7. The Code helps to define those actions that are ethically improper to request of a software engineer or teams of software engineers.

8. In all these judgments concern for the health, safety and welfare of the public is primary; that is, the "Public Interest" is central to this Code.

9. The Code prescribes these as obligations of anyone claiming to be or aspiring to be a software engineer.

10. It is not intended that the individual parts of the Code be used in isolation to justify errors of omission or commission.

1. In particular, software engineers shall, as appropriate:Help develop an organizational environment favorable to acting ethically.

2. Not punish anyone for expressing ethical concerns about a project.

3. 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.

4. 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.

5. 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.

6. Be careful to use only accurate data derived by ethical and lawful means, and use it only in ways properly authorized.

7. 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.

8. The Code is not a simple ethical algorithm that generates ethical decisions.

9. Ethical tensions can best be addressed by thoughtful consideration of fundamental principles, rather than blind reliance on detailed regulations.

10. 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.