High computer ethics hacked

Press, 16 August 1980, Page 24

High computer ethics hacked

The Computer Society has commended the Controller and Auditor-Gener-al (Mr A. C. Shades) for emphasising the need for high ethical standards in computer use.

The president of the society, Mr I. W. Lauchland said his organisation had always emphasised the importance of all users realising their responsibilities in the design and implementation of computer systems. Mr Shailes’s report on the use of computers in the public service had attracted much attention, especially in relation to the problems facing the Health Department’s computer system.

Computer systems were there to help management.. Successful projects required skill in project man-

agement and a knowledge of the environment that the system served. These skills were generally available in New Zealand. Where a specialised knowledge was lacking locally it could be obtained overseas but this did not mean that the whole project had to be taken over by outside interests. Society members agreed to the need for high ethical standards and professional integrity. They already subscribed to a code of ethics and this was a condition of membership. ... The society welcomed the suggestion that priv- r acy should be legally protected and would assist in fostering- such protection.

It was now working on a “Code of Good Practice” as a guide for ' its members.

Computers did what they were told. New Zealanders as . a whole should decide who did the telling and .this should be implemented by practitioners in whom the public had confidence. The society hoped to foster that confidence.