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PROFESSIONAL PRACTICES

ASSIGNMENT
Overview of the British computer Society code of
conduct, IEEE code of ethics, ACM code of ethics and
professional conduct, ACM/IEEE software Engineering
code of conduct and professional practice.

M. Adeel
BSSIT-16-42
What are ethics?
Societies are a collection of individuals, each having their own
ideas and beliefs about the type of behavior that is acceptable, or not
acceptable. These ideas and beliefs can vary widely, and what one
person believes is good and right, another may see as bad and wrong.
To make sure that societies function successfully, they develop
principles that define what is morally good and right behavior for
individuals and the society itself. These principles are known as ethics.
Computer ethics are a set of principles that define what is morally good
and right behavior when using computers.
These ethics cover:
 computers’ contribution to the health, safety and welfare of the
public
 privacy
 intellectual property rights (copyright)
 censorship.
Codes of conduct
A code of conduct is a set of rules or practices defining how a
group or organization should behave organizations such as businesses,
schools, and hospitals have codes of conduct. Many codes contain rules
that seek to protect the organization from the behavior of individuals,
as well as protecting the individuals within the organization. Codes of
conduct are also applied to computers and their use. They seek to make
sure that computers are used safely and lawfully, and to protect the
interests of organizations and individuals. Computer professionals in
particular have a need to follow codes of conduct. When designing and
building systems, software developers (engineers) have opportunities
to cause harm to their clients and to the public, such as:
 failing to make sure their software is fit for purpose (for
example, consider the implications of a safety system that has
faulty software)
 including malicious software designed to spread malware
 including unauthorized and undeclared ways into the system
(backdoor) so that they can later gain access without their client’s
knowledge.
British Computer Society Code of Conduct
INTRODUCTION
As a professional body, the British Computer Society (known as
BCS, the Chartered Institute for IT), has a responsibility to set
rules and professional standards to direct the behavior of its
members in professional matters. It is expected that these rules
and professional standards will be higher than those established
by the general law and that they will be enforced through
disciplinary action which can result in expulsion from
membership. Members are expected to exercise their own
judgement (which should be made in such a way as to be
reasonably justified) to meet the requirements of the code and
seek advice if in doubt.
This Code of Conduct:
• sets out the professional standards required by BCS
as a condition of membership.
• applies to all members, irrespective of their
membership grade, the role they fulfil, or the
 jurisdiction where they are employed or discharge
their contractual obligations.
• governs the conduct of the individual, not the nature
of the business or ethics of any Relevant Authority

1. Public Interest
 Has due regard for public health, privacy,
security and wellbeing of others and the
environment.

 have due regard for the legitimate rights of Third

Parties.

 conducts your professional activities without

discrimination on the grounds of sex, sexual
orientation, marital status, nationality, color,
race, ethnic origin, religion, age or disability, or of
any other condition or requirement d. promote
equal access to the benefits of IT and seek to
promote the inclusion of all sectors in society
wherever opportunities arise.
2. Professional Competence and Integrity

 only undertake to do work or provide a service

that is within your professional competence.

 NOT claim any level of competence that you do

not possess.
  develop your professional knowledge, skills and
competence on a continuing basis, maintaining
awareness of technological developments,
procedures, and standards that are relevant to
your field.

 ensure that you have the knowledge and

understanding of Legislation* and that you
comply with such Legislation, in carrying out your
professional responsibilities.

 respect and value alternative viewpoints and,

seek, accept and offer honest criticisms of work.

 avoids injuring others, their property, reputation,

or employment by false or malicious or negligent
action or inaction. g. reject and will not make any
offer of bribery or unethical inducement.

3. Duty to Relevant Authority

 carry out your professional responsibilities with

due care and diligence in accordance with the
Relevant Authority’s requirements whilst
exercising your professional judgement at all
times.

 seek to avoid any situation that may give rise to

a conflict of interest between you and your
Relevant Authority.
  accept professional responsibility for your work
and for the work of colleagues who are defined in
a given context as working under your
supervision.
 NOT disclose or authorize to be disclosed, or use
for personal gain or to benefit a third party,
confidential information except with the
permission of your Relevant Authority, or as
required by Legislation.
4. Duty to the Profession

 accepts your personal duty to uphold the

reputation of the profession and not take any
action which could bring the profession into
disrepute.

 seeks to improve professional standards through

participation in their development, use and
enforcement.

 upholds the reputation and good standing of BCS,

the Chartered Institute for IT.

 act with integrity and respect in your professional

relationships with all members of BCS and with
members of other professions with whom you
work in a professional capacity.

ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct

 THE CODE AND GUIDELINES WERE DEVELOPED BY THE ACM
CODE 2018 TASK FORCE:
Executive Committee:
Don Gotterbarn (Chair), Bo Brinkman, Catherine Flick,
Michael S. Kirkpatrick, Keith Miller, Kate Varansky, and Marty J. Wolf.
Members:
Eve Anderson, Ron Anderson, Amy Bruckman, Karla Carter,
Michael Davis, Penny Duquenoy, Jeremy Epstein, Kai Kimppa, Lorraine
Kisselburgh, Shrawan Kumar, Andrew McGettrick, Natasa Milic-Frayling,
Denise Oram, Simon Rogerson, David Shama, Janice Sipior, Eugene
Spafford, and Les Waguespack.
General Ethical Principles
 Contribute to society and to human well-being, acknowledging
that all people are stakeholders in computing.
 Avoid harm.
 Be honest and trustworthy.
 Be fair and take action not to discriminate.
 Respect the work required to produce new ideas, inventions,
creative works, and computing artifacts.
 Respect privacy.
 Honor confidentiality
Professional Responsibilities
 Strive to achieve high quality in both the processes and
products of professional work.
 Maintain high standards of professional competence, conduct,
and ethical practice.
  Know and respect existing rules pertaining to professional
work.
 Accept and provide appropriate professional review.
 Give comprehensive and thorough evaluations of computer
systems and their impacts, including analysis of possible risks.
 Perform work only in areas of competence.
 Foster public awareness and understanding of computing,
related technologies, and their consequences.
 Access computing and communication resources only when
authorized or when compelled by the public good.
 Design and implement systems that are robustly and usably
secure.

Professional Leadership Principles

 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.
 Articulate, apply, and support policies and processes that
reflect the principles of the Code.
 Create opportunities for members of the organization or group
to grow as professionals.
 Use care when modifying or retiring systems.
 Recognize and take special care of systems that become
integrated into the infrastructure of society
IEEE Code of Ethics
We, the members of the IEEE, in recognition of the importance of
our technologies in affecting the quality of life throughout the world,
and in accepting a personal obligation to our profession, its members
and the communities we serve, do hereby commit ourselves to the
highest ethical and professional conduct and agree:
1. to accept responsibility in making decisions consistent with the
safety, health and welfare of the public, and to disclose promptly
factors that might endanger the public or the environment;
2. to avoid real or perceived conflicts of interest whenever
possible, and to disclose them to affected parties when they do
exist;
3. to be honest and realistic in stating claims or estimates based
on available data;
4. to reject bribery in all its forms;
5. to improve the understanding of technology, its appropriate
application, and potential consequences;
6. to maintain and improve our technical competence and to
undertake technological tasks for others only if qualified by
training or experience, or after full disclosure of pertinent
limitations;
7. to seek, accept, and offer honest criticism of technical work, to
acknowledge and correct errors, and to credit properly the
contributions of others;
8. to treat fairly all persons regardless of such factors as race,
religion, gender, disability, age, or national origin;
 9. to avoid injuring others, their property, reputation, or
employment by false or malicious action;
10. to assist colleagues and co-workers in their professional
development and to support them in following this code of ethics.

Joint IEEE-CS/ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Practice

Organizations exist that aim to provide standards for
professionals. Two organizations that represent computing
professionals are the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), and
the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Computer
Society. Between them, these organizations developed the ACM/IEEE
Software Engineering Code of Ethics. These ethics aim to provide rules,
standards and protection for software developers and their clients.
The Code of Ethics has eight principles:
1. PUBLIC – Software engineers shall act consistently with the
public interest.
2. CLIENT AND EMPLOYER – Software engineers shall act in a
manner that is in the best interests of their client and employer,
consistent with the public interest.
3. PRODUCT – Software engineers shall ensure that their
products and related modifications meet the highest professional
standards possible.
4. JUDGEMENT – Software engineers shall maintain integrity
and independence in their professional judgement.
5. MANAGEMENT – Software engineering managers and
leaders shall subscribe to and promote an ethical approach to the
management of software development and maintenance.
6. PROFESSION – Software engineers shall advance the
integrity and reputation of the profession consistent with the
public interest.
7. COLLEAGUES – Software engineers shall be fair to and
supportive of their colleagues.
8. 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.