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>Do you really want to have "I wrote an novel algorithm to track people" on your resume? The great thing about writing resumes is that you can leave things off

>Do you really want to have "I wrote an novel algorithm to track people" on your resume? The great thing about writing resumes is that you can leave things off. >Software engineers should have to deal with the ethical consequences of the work they've done. Give us legal protections and resources to stand up and to and report unethical behavior by companies then. You're arguing correctly on a moral ground, but you don't have good industry ethics without good legal precedents. Otherwise the best chance you've got is to get media attention and now you're fighting the company's PR. When you can point to "Defendant can no longer work in software development because of an ethical failure" cases, you will have a much stronger argument to get engineers to follow ethical guidelines (we're assuming those have been written down on something other than a Github-feelgood repo for that case).

spinlock 9y ago
This is exactly right. In fact, Engineers can't blow the whistle on a company that's violating privacy law without harming our careers. I think Engineers who carry water for unethical companies probably get paid more. Your next employer would much rather hire you if you kept your head down during the PR Nightmare than if you made noise and created a problem for management.
saagarjha 9y ago
> The great thing about writing resumes is that you can leave things off. Sure, but then you're diminishing the value of what you did. If someone asks you want you did at Facebook, it would be odd if you said "I'd rather not say", as would it if you had five years of blank in your resume. > Give us legal protections and resources to stand up and to and report unethical behavior by companies then. I do agree that this is an issue that should be addressed.
- FLUX-YOU 9y ago
  >Sure, but then you're diminishing the value of what you did. If someone asks you want you did at Facebook, it would be odd if you said "I'd rather not say", as would it if you had five years of blank in your resume. I guess if you only worked on creepy and unsavory things, you'd be in a tough spot. Assuming you can't weasel-word your way out of the creepiness and make it more palatable. If someone ultimately thinks that, you're back to "move on to the next company". And the consequences are paid then and there. But again, you can lean on the market's health to make those consequences really small.

spinlock 9y ago

This is exactly right. In fact, Engineers can't blow the whistle on a company that's violating privacy law without harming our careers. I think Engineers who carry water for unethical companies probably get paid more. Your next employer would much rather hire you if you kept your head down during the PR Nightmare than if you made noise and created a problem for management.

saagarjha 9y ago

> The great thing about writing resumes is that you can leave things off. Sure, but then you're diminishing the value of what you did. If someone asks you want you did at Facebook, it would be odd if you said "I'd rather not say", as would it if you had five years of blank in your resume. > Give us legal protections and resources to stand up and to and report unethical behavior by companies then. I do agree that this is an issue that should be addressed.

FLUX-YOU 9y ago
>Sure, but then you're diminishing the value of what you did. If someone asks you want you did at Facebook, it would be odd if you said "I'd rather not say", as would it if you had five years of blank in your resume. I guess if you only worked on creepy and unsavory things, you'd be in a tough spot. Assuming you can't weasel-word your way out of the creepiness and make it more palatable. If someone ultimately thinks that, you're back to "move on to the next company". And the consequences are paid then and there. But again, you can lean on the market's health to make those consequences really small.