Ethics: a key aspect of information systems and information technology

Abstract

This article is part of one of the outputs of a research project aimed at designing a digital document for carrying out accounting audits within SMEs. The use of information technology in business has produced an important impact on society. Consequently, it has raised ethical aspects in various industrial sectors (O´Brien and Marakas (2006)), particularly with regards to the management of information systems and the implementation of audits. Business ethics deals with a plethora of ethical issues faced by managers in making decisions about their commercial activities on a daily basis. Therefore, business activities and the use of information technology (IT) based on the creation of principles require decision makers to consider their behavior, specifically with regard to the ethics involved with the use of any kind of technology. It has also been established that there are ethical and social problems from the standpoint of the impact of IT on employment, individuality, working conditions, privacy, health, cybercrime, and duplication of information. Both managers and auditors can contribute to resolving problems associated with the inappropriate use of information technology by taking on their ethical responsibilities based on the design of professional conduct standards and acknowledging their (ethical and moral) obligation towards society.