ACC618 Week 1 Discussion 2 Confidentiality Standards

“Loyalty is the one virtue that should never take precedence over other values such as honesty and integrity,” Min writes in his book. “Ethical values sometimes conflict with one another.” [Min] When the Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Act was passed into law in 2002, Congress included a whistleblower protection provision in order to combat the “corporate code of silence,” which discouraged employees from reporting fraudulent behavior to the appropriate authorities [Zuc17]. Specifically, this provision was intended to combat the “corporate code of silence” that existed at the time. My ethical obligation would be to submit my observations to my supervisor; however, if I discover that no proper action has been taken after reporting, then I would need to consider going outside the organization to report any financial wrongdoings that I have observed.

Whistleblowing within an organization is often acceptable when it is done for the purpose of elucidating the viewpoints of your superiors and bringing concerns of concern to the highest levels within the organization, including the auditing committee of the board of directors [Min]. Before making a decision regarding whether or not to submit my observations of financial malfeasance outside of the company to the SEC, I would need to examine the responsibilities I have to outsiders and external auditors in the event that there have still been no changes made. I would also need to make sure that I seek legal advice FIRST before going outside the company. This is so that I am informed of all of the ramifications that could occur as a result of my decision to violate confidentially and take the issues outside of the company.

References

Mintz, S., & Morris, R. (2014). Ethical Obligations and Decision-Making in Accounting: Text and Cases,3rd Edition. Retrieved from https://ashfordcollege.vitalsource.comLinks to an external site.

Zuckerman, J., & Stock, M. (2017). Sarbanes-Oxley 15 Years Later: Accountants Need to Speak Up NowMore Than Ever. Retrieved from GoingConcern: https://goingconcern.com/sarbanes-oxleyaccountants-whistleblowers/Links to an external site.