PART 1: DOING ETHICS TECHNIQUE AND ETHICAL THEORY QUESTIONS (Total 40 marks)

Part 1 – Question 1 – Doing Ethics Technique
Analyse the following case study using the Doing Ethics Technique.
Case study
A software development company has just produced a new software package that incorporates the new tax laws and figures taxes for both individuals and small businesses. The president of the company knows that the program has a number of bugs. He also believes the first firm to put this kind of software on the market is likely to capture the largest market share. The company widely advertises the program. When the company actually ships a CD, it includes a disclaimer of responsibility for errors resulting from the use of the program. The company expects it will receive a number of complaints, queries, and suggestions for modification. The company plans to use these to make changes and eventually issue updated, improved, and debugged versions. The president argues that this is general industry policy and that anyone who buys version 1.0 of a program knows this and will take proper precautions. Because of bugs, a number of users filed incorrect tax returns and were penalised by the ATO

Reference:
Australian Computer Society (2014). ACS Code of Ethics Case Studies & Related Clauses to the Code of Conduct Website: http://www.acs.org.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0020/12179/ACS-Code-of-Ethics-Case-Studies.pdf Retrieved: 17 September 2014
Part 1 – Question 2 – Ethical Theory question (10 marks)
Consider the scenario from Part 1, Question 1, from the perspective of the following four (4)
ethical theories to argue that the actions of the president are unethical.
• Utilitarianism,
• deontology,
• virtue and
• contract
Your answer should include
a concise definition of the four ethical theories
a clear explanation as to how each of the four ethical theories can be applied to argue that the manager’s actions are unethical.