overview of the British computer society code of conduct

The BCS code of conduct also states that IT professionals should develop their professional knowledge,
skills and competence on a continuing basis, maintaining awareness of technological developments,
procedures, and standards that are relevant to their field(s).

7.8 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:
I. To uphold the highest standards of integrity, responsible behavior, and ethical conduct in
professional activities.
1. to hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public, to strive to comply with ethical
design and sustainable development practices, to protect the privacy of others, and to disclose
promptly factors that might endanger the public or the environment;
2. to improve the understanding by individuals and society of the capabilities and societal
implications of conventional and emerging technologies, including intelligent systems;
3. to avoid real or perceived conflicts of interest whenever possible, and to disclose them to
affected parties when they do exist;
4. to avoid unlawful conduct in professional activities, and to reject bribery in all its forms;
5. to seek, accept, and offer honest criticism of technical work, to acknowledge and correct
errors, to be honest and realistic in stating claims or estimates based on available data, and to
credit properly the contributions of others;
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;
II. To treat all persons fairly and with respect, to not engage in harassment or discrimination, and to
avoid injuring others.
7. to treat all persons fairly and with respect, and to not engage in discrimination based on
characteristics such as race, religion, gender, disability, age, national origin, sexual orientation,
gender identity, or gender expression;
8. to not engage in harassment of any kind, including sexual harassment or bullying behavior;
9. to avoid injuring others, their property, reputation, or employment by false or malicious
actions, rumors or any other verbal or physical abuses;
III. To strive to ensure this code is upheld by colleagues and co-workers.
10. to support colleagues and co-workers in following this code of ethics, to strive to ensure the
code is upheld, and to not retaliate against individuals reporting a violation.
 
Adopted by the IEEE Board of Directors and incorporating revisions through June 2020.
 
Changes to the IEEE Code of Ethics will be made only after the following conditions are met:
  Proposed changes shall have been published in THE INSTITUTE at least three (3) months in
advance of final consideration by the Board of Directors, with a request for comment, and  
 All IEEE Major Boards shall have the opportunity to discuss proposed changes prior to final
action by the Board of Directors, and  
 An affirmative vote of two-thirds of the votes of the members of the Board of Directors present
at the time of the vote, provided a quorum is present, shall be required for changes to be made.

International Code of Ethics For Midwives

The International Confederation of Midwives invites your comments on its Code of Ethics. Please

answer the following questions and address your response to Secretary General, International
Confederation, 10 Barley Mow Passage, Chiswick, London W4 4PH, England: 1. Are there any
noticeable gaps in the ICM Code as written? 2. Are there any words or phrases in the ICM Code
that are confusing or inappropriate? Please list them and explain. 3. If you have had the
opportunity to use the ICM Code, please comment on its usefulness and give examples.

Introduction
The aim of the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) is to improve the standard of
care provided to women, babies and families throughout the world through the
development, education, and appropriate utilization of the professional midwife. In keeping
with its aim of women’s health and focus on the midwife, the ICM sets forth the following
code to guide the education, practice and research of the midwife. This code
acknowledges women as persons, seeks justice for all people and equity in access to
health care, and is based on mutual relationships of respect, trust, and the dignity of all
members of society.

The Code
I. Midwifery Relationships
A. Midwives respect a woman’s informed right of choice and promote
the woman’s acceptance of responsibility for the outcomes of her choices.
B. Midwives work with women, supporting their right to participate
actively in decisions about their care, and empowering women to speak for themselves
on issues affecting the health of women and their families in their culture/society.
C. Midwives, together with women, work with policy and funding agencies
to define women’s needs for health services and to ensure that resources are fairly
allocated considering priorities and availability.
D. Midwives support and sustain each other in their professional
roles, and actively nurture their own and others’ sense of self-worth.
 E. Midwives work with other health professionals, consulting and
referring as necessary when the woman’s need for care exceeds the competencies of
the midwife.
F. Midwives recognize the human interdependence within their field
of practice and actively seek to resolve inherent conflicts.

II. Practice of Midwifery

A. Midwives provide care for women and childbearing families
with respect for cultural diversity while also working to eliminate harmful practices
within those same cultures.
B. Midwives encourage realistic expectations of childbirth by women
within their own society, with the minimum expectation that no women should be harmed
by conception or childbearing.
C. Midwives use their professional knowledge to ensure safe birthing
practices in all environments and cultures.
D. Midwives respond to the psychological, physical, emotional and
spiritual needs of women seeking health care, whatever their circumstances.
E. Midwives act as effective role models in health promotion for
women throughout their life cycle, for families and for other health professionals.
F. Midwives actively seek personal, intellectual and professional
growth throughout their midwifery career, integrating this growth into their practice.

III. The Professional Responsibilities of Midwives

A. Midwives hold in confidence client information in order to protect
the right to privacy, and use judgment in sharing this information.
B. Midwives are responsible for their decisions and actions, and are accountable
for the related outcomes in their care of women.
C. Midwives may refuse to participate in activities for which they hold
deep moral opposition; however, the emphasis on individual conscience should not
deprive women of essential health services.
D. Midwives participate in the development and implementation of health
policies that promote the health of all women and childbearing families.

IV. Advancement of Midwifery Knowledge and Practice

A. Midwives ensure that the advancement of midwifery knowledge is based
on activities that protect the rights of women as persons.
B. Midwives develop and share midwifery knowledge through a variety of
processes, such as peer review and research.
C. Midwives participate in the formal education of midwifery students and
midwives.

ACM and IEEE software engineering code of ethics

The joint ACM/IEEE-CS Software Engineering Code was published as: Don Gotterbarn, Keith
Miller, and Simon Rogerson. 1997. Software engineering code of ethics. Commun. ACM 40, 11
(November 1997), 110-118. DOI: 10.1145/265684.265699
Note that this code is for anyone that is a member of the software engineering profession,
regardless of ACM membership status. You may also wish to consult The Code for all ACM
members (regardless of profession).

Thanks to SEERI for these translations of the SE Code:               

Want to contribute a translation? Get it touch via the Contact Us page.
The Software Engineering Code of Ethics and Professional
Practice
Software Engineering Code of Ethics and Professional Practice (Version 5.2) as recommended by
the ACM/IEEE-CS Joint Task Force on Software Engineering Ethics and Professional Practices
and jointly approved by the ACM and the IEEE-CS as the standard for teaching and practicing
software engineering.

Software Engineering Code of Ethics and Professional Practice

(Short Version)
INTRODUCTION

The short version of the code summarizes aspirations at a high level of the abstraction; the clauses
that are included in the full version give examples and details of how these aspirations change the
way we act as software engineering professionals. Without the aspirations, the details can become
legalistic and tedious; without the details, the aspirations can become high sounding but empty;
together, the aspirations and the details form a cohesive code.

Software engineers shall commit themselves to making the analysis, specification, design,
development, testing and maintenance of software a beneficial and respected profession. In
accordance with their commitment to the health, safety and welfare of the public, software
engineers shall adhere to the following 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. JUDGMENT – Software engineers shall maintain integrity and independence in their
professional judgment.

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.

Software Engineering Code of Ethics and Professional Practice

(Full Version)
PREAMBLE

Computers have a central and growing role in commerce, industry, government, medicine,
education, entertainment and society at large. 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. 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. To
ensure, as much as possible, that their efforts will be used for good, software engineers must
commit themselves to making software engineering a beneficial and respected profession. In
accordance with that commitment, software engineers shall adhere to the following Code of Ethics
and Professional Practice.

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. The Principles identify the ethically responsible
relationships in which individuals, groups, and organizations participate and the primary
obligations within these relationships. The Clauses of each Principle are illustrations of some of
the obligations included in these relationships. These obligations are founded in the software
engineer’s humanity, in special care owed to people affected by the work of software engineers,
and the unique elements of the practice of software engineering. The Code prescribes these as
obligations of anyone claiming to be or aspiring to be a software engineer.

It is not intended that the individual parts of the Code be used in isolation to justify errors of
omission or commission. The list of Principles and Clauses is not exhaustive. The Clauses should
not be read as separating the acceptable from the unacceptable in professional conduct in all
practical situations. The Code is not a simple ethical algorithm that generates ethical decisions. In
some situations standards may be in tension with each other or with standards from other sources.
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.

Ethical tensions can best be addressed by thoughtful consideration of fundamental principles,

rather than blind reliance on detailed regulations. 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. 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.

The dynamic and demanding context of software engineering requires a code that is adaptable and
relevant to new situations as they occur. 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. The Code provides an
ethical foundation to which individuals within teams and the team as a whole can appeal. The
Code helps to define those actions that are ethically improper to request of a software engineer or
teams of software engineers.

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

PRINCIPLES

Principle 1: PUBLIC

Software engineers shall act consistently with the public interest. In particular, software engineers
shall, as appropriate:

1.01. Accept full responsibility for their own work.

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

1.03. Approve software only if they have a well-founded belief that it is safe, meets specifications,
passes appropriate tests, and does not diminish quality of life, diminish privacy or harm the
environment. The ultimate effect of the work should be to the public good.
1.04. 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.

1.05. Cooperate in efforts to address matters of grave public concern caused by software, its
installation, maintenance, support or documentation.

1.06. Be fair and avoid deception in all statements, particularly public ones, concerning software or
related documents, methods and tools.

1.07. Consider issues of physical disabilities, allocation of resources, economic disadvantage and
other factors that can diminish access to the benefits of software.

1.08. Be encouraged to volunteer professional skills to good causes and contribute to public
education concerning the discipline.

Principle 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. In particular, software engineers shall, as appropriate:

2.01. Provide service in their areas of competence, being honest and forthright about any
limitations of their experience and education.

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

2.03. Use the property of a client or employer only in ways properly authorized, and with the
client’s or employer’s knowledge and consent.

2.04. Ensure that any document upon which they rely has been approved, when required, by
someone authorized to approve it.

2.05. Keep private any confidential information gained in their professional work, where such
confidentiality is consistent with the public interest and consistent with the law.

2.06. Identify, document, collect evidence and report to the client or the employer promptly if, in
their opinion, a project is likely to fail, to prove too expensive, to violate intellectual property law,
or otherwise to be problematic.

2.07. Identify, document, and report significant issues of social concern, of which they are aware,
in software or related documents, to the employer or the client.
2.08. Accept no outside work detrimental to the work they perform for their primary employer.

2.09. 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.

Principle 3: PRODUCT

Software engineers shall ensure that their products and related modifications meet the highest
professional standards possible. In particular, software engineers shall, as appropriate:

3.01. 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.

3.02. Ensure proper and achievable goals and objectives for any project on which they work or
propose.

3.03. Identify, define and address ethical, economic, cultural, legal and environmental issues
related to work projects.

3.04. 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.

3.05. Ensure an appropriate method is used for any project on which they work or propose to
work.

3.06. 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.

3.07. Strive to fully understand the specifications for software on which they work.

3.08. Ensure that specifications for software on which they work have been well documented,
satisfy the users’ requirements and have the appropriate approvals.

3.09. 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.

3.10. Ensure adequate testing, debugging, and review of software and related documents on which
they work.
3.11. Ensure adequate documentation, including significant problems discovered and solutions
adopted, for any project on which they work.

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

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

3.14. Maintain the integrity of data, being sensitive to outdated or flawed occurrences.

3.15 Treat all forms of software maintenance with the same professionalism as new development.

Principle 4: JUDGMENT

Software engineers shall maintain integrity and independence in their professional judgment. In
particular, software engineers shall, as appropriate:

4.01. Temper all technical judgments by the need to support and maintain human values.

4.02 Only endorse documents either prepared under their supervision or within their areas of
competence and with which they are in agreement.

4.03. Maintain professional objectivity with respect to any software or related documents they are
asked to evaluate.

4.04. Not engage in deceptive financial practices such as bribery, double billing, or other improper
financial practices.

4.05. Disclose to all concerned parties those conflicts of interest that cannot reasonably be avoided
or escaped.

4.06. Refuse to participate, as members or advisors, in a private, governmental or professional

body concerned with software related issues, in which they, their employers or their clients have
undisclosed potential conflicts of interest.

Principle 5: MANAGEMENT

Software engineering managers and leaders shall subscribe to and promote an ethical approach to
the management of software development and maintenance . In particular, those managing or
leading software engineers shall, as appropriate:
5.01 Ensure good management for any project on which they work, including effective procedures
for promotion of quality and reduction of risk.

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

5.03. 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.

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

5.05. 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.

5.06. Attract potential software engineers only by full and accurate description of the conditions of
employment.

5.07. Offer fair and just remuneration.

5.08. Not unjustly prevent someone from taking a position for which that person is suitably
qualified.

5.09. Ensure that there is a fair agreement concerning ownership of any software, processes,
research, writing, or other intellectual property to which a software engineer has contributed.

5.10. Provide for due process in hearing charges of violation of an employer’s policy or of this
Code.

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

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

Principle 6: PROFESSION

Software engineers shall advance the integrity and reputation of the profession consistent with the
public interest. In particular, software engineers shall, as appropriate:

6.01. Help develop an organizational environment favorable to acting ethically.

6.02. Promote public knowledge of software engineering.

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

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

6.05. Not promote their own interest at the expense of the profession, client or employer.

6.06. Obey all laws governing their work, unless, in exceptional circumstances, such compliance is
inconsistent with the public interest.

6.07. 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.

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

6.09. 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.

6.10. Avoid associations with businesses and organizations which are in conflict with this code.

6.11. Recognize that violations of this Code are inconsistent with being a professional software
engineer.

6.12. Express concerns to the people involved when significant violations of this Code are detected
unless this is impossible, counter-productive, or dangerous.

6.13. Report significant violations of this Code to appropriate authorities when it is clear that
consultation with people involved in these significant violations is impossible, counter-productive
or dangerous.

Principle 7: COLLEAGUES

Software engineers shall be fair to and supportive of their colleagues. In particular, software
engineers shall, as appropriate:

7.01. Encourage colleagues to adhere to this Code.

7.02. Assist colleagues in professional development.

7.03. Credit fully the work of others and refrain from taking undue credit.
7.04. Review the work of others in an objective, candid, and properly-documented way.

7.05. Give a fair hearing to the opinions, concerns, or complaints of a colleague.

7.06. Assist colleagues in being fully aware of current standard work practices including policies
and procedures for protecting passwords, files and other confidential information, and security
measures in general.

7.07. 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.

7.08. In situations outside of their own areas of competence, call upon the opinions of other
professionals who have competence in that area.

Principle 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. In particular, software
engineers shall continually endeavor to:

8.01. 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.

8.02. Improve their ability to create safe, reliable, and useful quality software at reasonable cost
and within a reasonable time.

8.03. Improve their ability to produce accurate, informative, and well-written documentation.

8.04. Improve their understanding of the software and related documents on which they work and
of the environment in which they will be used.

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

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

8.07 Not give unfair treatment to anyone because of any irrelevant prejudices.

8.08. Not influence others to undertake any action that involves a breach of this Code.
8.09. Recognize that personal violations of this Code are inconsistent with being a professional
software engineer.

This Code was developed by the ACM/IEEE-CS joint task force on Software Engineering Ethics
and Professional Practices (SEEPP):

Executive Committee: Donald Gotterbarn (Chair), Keith Miller and Simon Rogerson;

Members: Steve Barber, Peter Barnes, Ilene Burnstein, Michael Davis, Amr El-Kadi, N. Ben
Fairweather, Milton Fulghum, N. Jayaram, Tom Jewett, Mark Kanko, Ernie Kallman, Duncan
Langford, Joyce Currie Little, Ed Mechler, Manuel J. Norman, Douglas Phillips, Peter Ron
Prinzivalli, Patrick Sullivan, John Weckert, Vivian Weil, S. Weisband and Laurie Honour Werth.

This Code may be published without permission as long as it is not changed in any way and it
carries the copyright notice. Copyright (c) 1999 by the Association for Computing Machinery, Inc.
and the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.