Ethics in the IT Community

This paper is an overview of the current state of ethics in the IT community. It describes the current state of ethics in IT, identifies the major areas of concern for the IT community, and discusses the relationships an IT professional will face, and the conflicts that may jeopardize those relationships. Central to this paper are the ideas that as a professional in the IT community, we must act in an ethical manner if we wish to keep the trust of our customers, be they our employer, our client, or the public at large. Many examples are used to illustrate the behavior, both ethical and unethical, of IT practitioners, including professionals, the general user, and those wishing to commit crimes using computers. The examples show how acts many view as innocent can be unethical and should be avoided. The intent is to convince that every aspect of IT must be looked at in a broader sense to avoid ethical issues and their consequences.