Social and ethical issues in software engineering

The association for computing machinery, or acm, claims to be the worlds largest educational and scientific computing society. Both social and political institutions require time before developing new behaviors. Ethical dilemmas in software engineering are changing by bryan. Pdf professional ethics in software engineering curricula. Practitioners in these fields became increasingly aware of the social and ethical implications of their work and philosophers began to see these fields as fertile ground for the scrutiny of applied ethics. As a profession, engineering constantly involves the exercise of expert judgment and discretion in the performance of services. Engineering ethics is a part of professional ethics namely the study of moral values and issues in the. Engineering ethics is the field of system of moral principles that apply to the practice of engineering. Computer engineering department, faculty of engineering. The ethical and social issues of information technology. Ethical issues facing engineers and their profession.

A general introduction to the social, ethical and professional issues in computing. Celebrating prezis teacher community for teacher appreciation week. Ethical, social, and political issues are closely linked. Ethical and social issues in technology arjay books. Discussion of ethics and ethical issues in software engineering is important. Mar 21, 2009 ethical issues in software engineering. Dec 27, 2018 i created and run the top 10 list of emerging ethical dilemmas and policy issues in science and technology, which has over a quarter of a million readers worldwide. We need to work harder to make software engineering more ethical. As a scholarly discipline, it is closely related to subjects such as the philosophy of science, the philosophy of engineering, and the ethics of technology. I recommend reading, if only once, the complete text of the software engineering code of ethics and professional practice. Introduction of new technology has a ripple effect in the current equilibrium, creating new ethical, social, and political issues that must be dealt with on individual, social, and political levels.

Ethical issues, professional issues, software engineering, mas the. The field examines and sets the obligations by engineers to society, to their clients, and to the profession. The software engineering code of ethics and professional practice contains a set of 24 imperatives that deal with professionalism, the interaction between professionals and. Top 9 ethical issues in artificial intelligence world. Every human being has certain responsibilities towards the society and.

We discuss how the immaturity of the software engineering discipline is reflected in an approach to ethical issues that compares unfavourably with other more mature disciplines. Why we need to address ethical issues in software engineering. The acmieee software engineering code of ethics and professional practice. These issues affect both the participants within the system and also those outside the information system. But some ethical and social risks are harder to recognize. Ultimate guide to engineering ethics ohio university. Softare developers have a right to expect that other software will not affect the operation of their product. Social issues and sustainability in engineering management. Computer engineering department, faculty of engineering university of zabol zabol, iran abstractthe present study is conducted among 283 students from university of zabol to identify the harm and ethical and social issues in the field of information technology and to classify the immoral practices that students are doing in this field.

Software engineering professionalism is a movement to make software engineering a profession, with aspects such as degree and certification programs, professional associations, professional ethics, and government licensing. Bullying is a negative practice used to control, intimidate. Social and ethical issues in computer science social. Discussion of book report and term project assignments 3 sept 19 ethical issues for computer professionals. Engineering ethics and engineering philosophy look at the relationship between the engineer as an ind. Our economic system is based on compensation for contribution to the economy, often assessed using an hourly wage. Such emails have the same look and feel as those received from the original site, but they might contain links to fake websites. So, they need to realize that many of the things they do have ethical, social, and political. The social and ethical issues of sdd linkedin slideshare. The good folks at the markkula center for applied ethics at santa clara university have released a selfcontained software engineering ethics module to fill the gap between the critical role of software and the lack of adequate ethical training in computer science and software engineering programs. Professional, ethical, and legal issues for software engineer. The software engineering code of ethics and professional practice, intended as a standard for teaching and practicing software engineering, documents the ethical and professional obligations of. Pdf professional and ethical issues of software engineering. Social and ethical issues of information systems ipt.

Legal and ethical issues facing cybersecurity researchers. Most of the software that influences the behavior of human beings wasnt created with strong ethical constructs around it. Computers and society an introduction to ethical issues. The role of ethics in software system design has increased in importance recently. Ethical issues in software engineering meherchilakalapudi, writes. I created and run the top 10 list of emerging ethical dilemmas and policy issues in science and technology, which has over a quarter of a million readers worldwide. Engineering ethics and computer ethics emerged as academic fields in the usa at about the same time 1980s and for many of the same reasons. Why software developers should take ethics into consideration. In this paper we explore how the software engineering research community is currently dealing with the ethical issues that some empirical research presents. Any person wishing to join the society must accept a code of ethics and professional conduct, which covers the ethical issues surrounding software piracy. Ethical considerations in software engineering east tennessee. Software engineering is a relatively young practice and compared with other engineering disciplines, its culture of professionalism is still developing. Engineering ethics can be further divided into microethics, concerned with individuals and the internal relations of the engineering profession and macroethics, concerned with the collective, social responsibility of the.

What are the most common ethical issues in social work. Oct 17, 2018 first, people need to understand and appreciate the issues, whether its why ethics is important in engineering or why weapon x is bad and needs to be banned. When a clients actions mirror their intentions, an ethical dilemma will rarely present itself in the social work context. For better or worse, software developers are building the fabric of tomorrows world. As software takes over more of our lives, the ethical ramifications of. An engineer, whether he works individually or works for a company, has to go through some ethical issues, mostly under conditions such as, conceptualization of a product, issues arising in design and testing departments, or may be on the issues involving the manufacturing, sales and services. Emerging technologies and ethical issues in engineering. Computer society and association for computing machin ery acm, emphasizes. Examples of ethics issues in software engineering download table. The social and ethical issues of software design and development ergonomics ergonomics is the study of the relationship between human workers and their work environment. This cannot be relied upon so the developer has a responsibility to ensure that other installed software will not affect the reliability of their product. Besides the renown example of selfdriving cars and their potential harmfulness, more mundane software such as social networks can introduce bias, break.

The ethical and social issues involved in engineering projects are now included in. All manuscripts should explicitly address ethical, social, or sustainability aspects. Physicians, attorneys and other professionals whose job duties affect others lives usually receive, as part of their formal training, courses that address ethical issues common to their professions. An examination of social, professional, and ethical issues involved in the use of computer technology. Weve introduced a few important problems and a software engineering code of ethics. Ethical issues in software engineering with the influence of computers on all walks of life and the role of software in all the systems, software professionals have the power to. Ethical issues in software analysis whether and when to notify software vendor how much detail to publish. We will discuss the ethical issues and the code of ethics for software. The practicing software engineer engages in a social process during software. People as part of the information system components can also be exploited using social engineering techniques. The majority of companies are still dependent on hourly work when it comes to products and services. Social and ethical issues software design development hsc.

Isaac asimov confronted this issue long ago when he wrote his laws of. Ethical issues in software engineering meherchilakalapudi. Social and ethical issues in engineering, ethical principles of engineering, professional code of ethics, some specific social problems in engineering practice. Earlier involvement and better articulation of ethical concerns may also facilitate innovation, and avert problems that can arise when the assumptions of management and of implementation teams are not aligned. Ethical issues for it security professionals computerworld. As responsible human beings and as professionals, we need to use the knowledge and skills for the benefit of the society. An introduction to software engineering ethics markkula. In my experience most people say social engineering is unethical because you are tricking, or conning someone, stealing data about them, using the information to access sensitive information, get free stuff, gain entry and generally manipulate people to do things, or disclose information. A phishing attack is a computerbased social engineering, where an attacker crafts an email that appears legitimate. The goal of social engineering is to gain the trust of the users of the system.

Evidencedbased management for sustainability and social issues in a technologically and socially and electronically linked world. Syllabus csc320 social issues in computer science fall 2010 3 preliminary course outline class week topics. The practicing software engineer engages in a social process during software production and thereby acquires obligations to. In order to protect their networks, it security professionals need to understand social engineering, who is targeted, and how social engineering attacks are orchestrated. Society of professional engineers nspe adopted their first formal canons of. Subjects may include software engineering ethics, computer safety and reliability, constitutional issues, intellectual property, computer crime, societal impact, emerging technologies, and philosophical issues. Social engineering is it ethical subliminal hacking. The system designers have the responsibility to make sure that the information system that they create takes account of social and ethical issues. Social and ethical issues in software deveopment prezi. When a wellintentioned client makes a misguided decision, however.

Mar 28, 2014 the social and ethical issues of software design and development ergonomics ergonomics is the study of the relationship between human workers and their work environment. The panelists explore emerging ethical issues related to software engineering, as well as how they can potentially be addressed. The purpose of is to collect ideas and links to ideas on ethical and social issues in technology, including but not limited to those issues of interest to christians, that impact the church, or otherwise have a theological aspect. Ethical issues in software engineering with the influence of computers on all walks of life and the role of software in all the systems, software professionals have the power to do good or bad to the society. Ethical issues such as the dualuse dilemma, privacy and protection has exposed gaps in the knowledge of software professionals in dealing with the ethical and social implications of. Pdf the ethical and social issues of information technology. In this paper we take a closer look at the regulative instruments, standards, design, and implementations of components, systems, and services and we present practical social and ethical challenges that have to be met, as well.

This ethics module for software engineering courses includes a reading, homework assignments, case studies, and classroom exercises, all designed to spark a conversation about ethical issues that students will face in their lives as software engineers. The panelists represent a diverse set of perspectives from. Engineering humanitarian, disaster recovery, and other socially supportive and desirable organizational practices. Engineers examines the ethical issues in software engineering. Social issues and sustainability in engineering management topics on social issues, corporate social responsibility, sustainability, and organizational ethics have generated considerable attention among a broad group of stakeholders including policy makers, industry, communities, employees, and managers. A categorization of ethical dilemmas in software engineering. Software engineering code of ethics and professional practice. Examining the ethical and social issues of health technology design through the public appraisal of prospective scenarios. Fareeda almutairi professional, ethical, and legal issues for software engineer cpsc 548 department of computer science college of engineering and computer science california state university, fullerton instructor name. Engineering ethics can be considered in three frames of referenceindividual, professional, and social. Spam can be used to spread computer viruses, trojan horses or other malicious software. In this document, you can easily notice that the code relates not only to technology aspects, but to social and personal aspects as well.

This is reinforced by the fact that most engineering ethics textbooks focus primarily on ethical issues faced by civil, mechanical or elecrical engineers. While ethics courses have become a staple of physicalworld engineering. Social issues in software engineering ieee conference. Three initial questions were posed to stimulate and focus the deliberations. In this paper we take a closer look at the regulative instruments, standards, design, and implementations of components, systems, and services and we present practical social and ethical. The field is a licensed discipline in texas in the united states texas board of professional engineers, since 20, engineers australia course accreditation since 2001. Social and ethical issues in engineering upcommons. An introduction to software engineering ethics santa clara. Aug 05, 2010 why people think social engineering is unethical. Participants are also expected to use systems in a socially and ethically acceptable manner.

Someone who blatantly abuses their family members without remorse, for example, will be quickly reported by a social worker without much internal conflict on the reporters part. The course begins with a survey of general ethical principles and decision making processes, examining effective tools and guidelines to resolve complex dilemmas. The ethical problems faced by the software engineer involve. How bulletproof should code really be sure, the minimal calculation, simple data structure, and bruteforce approach works well in demo when the problems are small. No training in ethical theory, applied ethics, or philosophy is required for either the instructor or the students as they tackle these materials. Ieeecsacm joint task force on software engineering ethics and. With the influence of computers on all walks of life and the role of software in all the systems, software professionals have the power to do good or bad to the society. Software engineers shall advance the integrity and reputation of the profession consistent with the public interest. He is also a futurist, and has interests in programming, software engineering, ethics, science. Technical and social history of software engineering, the. But by using artificial intelligence, a company can drastically cut down on relying on the human workforce, and this means that. Ethical issues in software development are obviously farranging and complicated, especially as new technologies, such as machine learning and artificial intelligence, increasingly come online.

Software engineering ethics are a subset of engineering ethics and professional ethics applied to the design and development of software systems. This piece will mention a number of key ethical issues in software development and then well consider some strategies for dealing with these issues. Software engineering managers and leaders shall subscribe to and promote an ethical approach to the management of software development and maintenance. Software engineering code of ethics ieee computer society. The essential social function is to clarify and formally state those ethical requirements that are important to the group as a.

Social engineering is a technique hackers use to manipulate end users and obtain information about an organization or computer systems. Jul 17, 2018 because software development has been progressing at such a rate, there are many ethical issues, some more complicated than others, that arise over time. Ethical issues in empirical studies of software engineering. These are just the tip of the iceberg of the many ethical issues constantly confronting engineers on a daily basis. Software developers should ask themselves ethical questions like who. According to the article software engineering code of ethics. Is it realistic for you to worry about the problems i outlined. Lets now look at some of the threats that information system face and what can be done to eliminate or minimize the damage if the threat were to materialize. Therefore, it includes all hardware, software and environment that affect how the user and participants interact with the product. Social and ethical issues in computer science studies ethical decision making in the complex world of information technology. Joseph herkert explains how professional engineering can implement micro ethical and macro ethical practices in social ethics. Identify, document, and report significant issues of social concern, of which they are.