Businesses don't do free. It is not what they exist for: The 'Stallman movement' isn't compatible with the the tech-company, the employed software-engineer, etc.
I think what the OP is getting at is that the for-profit tech industry needs something akin to the Hippocratic Oath [1]. As software engineers swearing to a set of 'do no harm' ethical codes could well be a first step to becoming a recognised professional.
I can certainly see a future with a framework like that. If a doctor does something unethical it could affect the life of a few people. If a programmer does it, it could affect the lives of billions - it's not a hard sell that something like an ethical code is probably well overdue.
The for profit industry has been very happy to integrate the fruits of the FOSS labor.
And yes, we need an ethics framework for the IT industry, but we need liability more than that and I don't think either is going to happen in the next 10 years. Maybe if there is a mass death (> 10K people at once or so, a few 100 doesn't seem to have made a difference so far) on account of a software issue we will finally wake up.
> The for profit industry has been very happy to integrate the fruits of the FOSS labor.
Of course they are. They get free labour and their profits are therefore higher. which is the entire purpose of any corporation, to maximise profits. Being upset about this is futile, it's the artefact of living in a capitalist world. The free-software movement just isn't going to move the needle on that. They can either come up with a licensing model that pays, or get over it.
But really, this isn't about FOSS, it's about engineers everywhere (whether in FOSS or working 9-5 in a software company) making ethical decisions and understanding the impact of their work, on potentially billions of people. Critically, I think having something to point at, "this is the oath I swore to", when talking to a boss, could be just the thing we need.
I think this is one of the areas where software being treated as "not real engineering" caused some trouble. I went to school for electrical engineering and in my senior year they really pushed the idea of engineering ethics [1] and the personal responsibilities we had to whistle-blow.
There is this Order of the Engineer [2] that has their own oath akin to the Hippocratic Oath. I went down the software path so I never really looked into it, but my professors were very in favor of it.
> As software engineers swearing to a set of 'do no harm' ethical codes could well be a first step
Just like "don't be evil"? Which was actually enshrined in Google's corporate code of conduct for some time, and could even believed if you squinted the right way...
You can choose to interpret my comment as being about corporations if you like; however, I was talking about individual engineers. It is perfectly feasible for a professional oath/code-of-ethics to work, as it does in other industries. It doesn't mean you will never get a bad actor, but it adds a layer of protection to any engineer.
For example, you could imagine that once the code-of-ethics is standardised:
* Organisations that employ software engineers will feel obliged to publicly follow it (like they all have to have public policies around things like modern slavery, etc.)
* They would also be pressured to display it on job ads. Because why would an engineer want to work somewhere that doesn't follow the industry code-of-ethics.
* Engineers have something to point at as a reference to what is, and what is not, ethical. Allowing them to not appear be the only voice in an organisation who can see harm being done.
* It could well enable a union of software engineers take industrial action if the code of ethics is being broken. Which would be a PR disaster for any corporation.
At the extreme end, you could possibly see a future where engineers are 'struck off' of the professional body representing us (for unethical practice).
The only downside I see is that ethics and morals are mutable, so it'd be pretty hard to nail down a concrete set of ethics that are effective without overstepping. There are however plenty of smart people in this industry, so it shouldn't be beyond us to work it out.
I think what the OP is getting at is that the for-profit tech industry needs something akin to the Hippocratic Oath [1]. As software engineers swearing to a set of 'do no harm' ethical codes could well be a first step to becoming a recognised professional.
I can certainly see a future with a framework like that. If a doctor does something unethical it could affect the life of a few people. If a programmer does it, it could affect the lives of billions - it's not a hard sell that something like an ethical code is probably well overdue.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hippocratic_Oath