Our Mission
At the heart of ESL’s mission is the commitment to developing methodologies for certifying the ethicality of software and software-intensive products. In an era where digital privacy often takes a backseat to functionality, we stand at the forefront for user rights, ensuring software acts only in the users’ intended interest, transparently and responsibly.
Our Vision
Our vision is to become the trusted and go-to lab for reliable, independent, and accurate ethicality verification of software applications and software-intensive products for users, consumers, and software developers. We strive to be a valued educational resource for how to use software while maintaining well-being, ethical use, and privacy. Through our efforts, we envision a future where users can confidently rely on software to be safe, respectful of privacy, and ethically designed, contributing to a more trustworthy digital world.
Why Software Ethics Matters?
Software ethics is more than a guideline; it’s a necessity. In today’s interconnected world, ensuring software integrity is vital not just for personal cybersecurity but for the public’s safety as devices and services become increasingly integrated into our daily lives. The ESL’s work champions this cause, aiming to instill confidence among users and the general public about the digital tools they use every day.
Our Approach
Housed within UMBC, a reputed public university, the ESL operates independently of the software industry’s profit-driven motives. Our certification process scrutinizes software and hardware alike, offering an unbiased assessment of ethical compliance. Additionally, we demystify terms of service agreements, making it easier for everyone to understand their rights and what they’re agreeing to when using software. We adhere to a set of rigorous standards that define what makes software ethical. These standards are designed to protect users, promote transparency, and ensure software integrity.
Below are the Seven Attributes that every piece of software must meet to be considered ethical in our evaluation:
- It only does what it says it does: Software must be honest and transparent in its functions and operations, avoiding any deceptive practices.
- It protects the user’s privacy: User privacy is paramount, and software must safeguard personal information diligently.
- It does not use hardware or software to monitor the user environment: Respect for user autonomy means no unauthorized surveillance or monitoring.
- It does not fingerprint their software or hardware ID without their consent: Users must have control over their digital identities, with consent being a prerequisite for personal identification.
- It doesn’t use their data for profit without their consent: Ethical software respects the ownership and privacy of user data, requiring explicit user consent for its use in profit-making activities.
- It does not consume their computational resources without need or consent: Software should use system resources judiciously, with a clear necessity or user permission.
- It consumes computational resources in an energy-efficient and sustainable way: Beyond efficiency, ethical software also commits to sustainability, minimizing its environmental impact.
These attributes guide our certification process, ensuring that software not only serves its intended purpose but does so in a way that aligns with our ethical standards. Through this approach, we aim to elevate the standard for software development and usage, making ethics a central pillar of the digital age.
We are located on the fourth floor of the College of Engineering and IT (COEIT) in ITE 454.
For inquiries, support, or more information, please contact us at esl@umbc.edu or eslresearch-support@proton.me.