BCS Code of Conduct

Working together to address issues in your profession and in wider society, you want everyone to have access to IT. You share what you know, uphold standards and conduct yourself professionally and fairly at all times.

PUBLIC INTEREST

You shall:

1. have due regard for public health, privacy, security and wellbeing of others and the environment;
2. have due regard for the legitimate rights of third parties;
3. conduct your professional activities without discrimination on the grounds of sex, sexual orientation, marital status, nationality, colour, race, ethnic origin, religion, age or disability, or of any other condition or requirement;
4. promote equal access to the benefits of IT and seek to promote the inclusion of all sectors in society wherever opportunities arise.

You have integrity and show competence, but you know you don’t know everything, that’s why you continuously learn and grow and never take on tasks that you don’t have the skills and resources to complete.

PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCE AND INTEGRITY

You shall:

1. only undertake to do work or provide a service that is within your professional competence;
2. NOT claim any level of competence that you do not possess;
3. develop your professional knowledge, skills and competence on a continuing basis, maintaining awareness of technological developments, procedures, and standards that are relevant to your field;
4. ensure that you have the knowledge and understanding of legislation and that you comply with such legislation, in carrying out your professional responsibilities;
5. respect and value alternative viewpoints and seek, accept and offer honest criticisms of work;
6. avoid injuring others, their property, reputation, or employment by false or malicious or negligent action or inaction;
7. reject and will not make any offer of bribery or unethical inducement.

You work with due care and diligence, acting in your client or company’s best interests at all times. You take personal and collective responsibility for your actions while maintaining discretion and ethical standards.

DUTY TO RELEVANT AUTHORITY

You shall:

1. carry out your professional responsibilities with due care and diligence in accordance with the relevant authority’s requirements while exercising your professional judgement at all times;
2. seek to avoid any situation that may give rise to a conflict of interest between you and your relevant authority;
3. accept professional responsibility for your work and for the work of colleagues who are defined in a given context as working under your supervision;
4. NOT disclose or authorise to be disclosed, or use for personal gain or to benefit a third party, confidential information except with the permission of your relevant authority, or as required by legislation;
5. NOT misrepresent or withhold information on the performance of products, systems or services (unless lawfully bound by a duty of confidentiality not to disclose such information), or take advantage of the lack of relevant knowledge or inexperience of others.

As a BCS member, you’re an ambassador for the IT industry and use your voice to help promote it positively to the world. You support your IT colleagues and other members in their growth both personally and professionally.

DUTY TO THE PROFESSION

You shall:

1. accept your personal duty to uphold the reputation of the profession and not take any action which could bring the profession into disrepute;
2. seek to improve professional standards through participation in their development, use and enforcement;
3. uphold the reputation and good standing of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT;
4. act with integrity and respect in your professional relationships with all members of BCS and with members of other professions with whom you work in a professional capacity;
5. encourage and support fellow members in their professional development.