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Comment by theendisney | Hacker News Reader

Im not a lawyer but i believe just following orders isnt considered a valid excuse. Now that machines participate in giving instructions it seems quite logical.

If the wires are hanging out of the wall and someone asks me to switch the power on it reminds me how my old boss almost died then chased the guy with a hammer but collapsed from his injuries before he could kill him. So i disassemble the switchboard. If there is someone like that walking around I don't care how long it takes. Sometimes they get angry I just ignore it. They may also report it to my boss.

RL is different like that but also quite similar.

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> Im not a lawyer but i believe just following orders isnt considered a valid excuse

This is sophistry that was used to condemn Nazis but has never applied to any context outside of the Nuremberg trials. Fail to follow orders and you're shot as a traitor. Follow them and you're hanged as a war criminal. "Just follow orders" is the basis of paid employment itself.

It is assumed that those giving bad orders will be held responsible for doing so, but this rarely proves to be the case. See the eBay harassment of the Steiners. Everybody involved that followed orders was punished except the executive that signed off on and provided support for the operation.

But in the Equifax breach, two executives were fired following criminal intrusion by Chinese hackers they had no involvement with. Everyone that neglected to follow orders to patch Struts probably still works there.

The rules are arbitrary.

Ok sure, not in the eyes of the law. But ethically

It’s hilarious that I started this thread by saying that software engineers should start to be held liable like real engineers and in the replies we have somehow decided to use… Nazis… as the analogy? What?

This doesn’t need an analogy.

Why not just look up examples of engineers disclosing breaches of code/contract? Every state has lists of complaints brought to their engineering board with results and disciplinary actions.

I’m an engineer and not only is “I’m just following orders” not a valid excuse but you’re legally obligated to disclose crimes

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