ACM Code of Ethics CSCI 362: Data Structures

CS Professional Associations Professional Organizations for Computer Scientists Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Founded in 1947 World’s largest scientific and educational computing society Organized into Special Interest Groups (SIGs) (e.g., SIGAI, SIGCSE, SIGGRAPH, SIGHPC, SIGPLAN) Motto: "Advancing Computing as a Science & Profession" SIGARCH

CS Professional Associations Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Founded in 1963 World's largest association of technical professionals Organized into Societies (e.g., Aerospace and Electronic Systems, Circuits and Systems, Communications, Computer, Photonics, Signal Processing, Vehicular Technology) Objectives: the educational and technical advancement of electrical and electronic engineering, telecommunications, computer engineering and allied disciplines

ACM Code of Ethics Ethics (from Merriam Webster) ACM Code of Ethics “the discipline dealing with what is good and bad and with moral duty and obligation” ACM Code of Ethics Expresses the “conscience of the profession” Consists of 25 Principles General Ethical Principles (7) Professional Responsibilities (9) Professional Leadership Principles (7) Compliance with the Code (2)

General Moral Imperatives 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. Use skills for benefit of society. Develop safe and reliable software (well-tested), no malware. Harm = negative consequences, like injury, disclosure of info, damage to property, reputation, or environment Discriminate based on gender, race, sex, religion, etc.

General Moral Imperatives Respect the work required to produce new ideas, inventions, creative works, and computing artifacts. Respect privacy. Honor confidentiality. Respect copyrights and patents. Don’t torrent software, movies, albums, textbooks, etc. Maintain only necessary private info, protect it Protect confidential info like trade secrets, client data, business strategy, research data

More Specific 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. Do IS, continuing ed, masters, certs, etc. Code reviews

More Specific Professional Responsibilities 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.

Organizational Leadership Organizational Leadership Imperatives 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. …

Compliance with the Code Uphold, promote, and respect the principles of the Code. Treat violations of the Code as inconsistent with membership in the ACM.

Further References https://www.acm.org/code-of-ethics