Giving Compass' Take:

• Fast Company reflects on 2018's volatile year for tech companies embroiled in ethical crises, whether it was neglecting the privacy of users or institutionalizing bias. These are suggestions on how to do better in 2019.

• Transparency may be the key to building more trust across the board. How can those in the nonprofit sector encourage more openness from Silicon Valley?

• Here's a blueprint for philanthropy and digital civil society in 2019.

2018 was a year of reckoning for tech companies, their employees, and consumers. Both Facebook and Google were caught misusing people’s personal information — landing their leaders in front of the Senate. There was public outcry over Amazon licensing biased facial recognition software to ICE and police departments. Tech employees got fed up with their companies, sparking protests across Silicon Valley. With so little oversight from regulators and continued poor judgment on the part of big companies, both consumers and makers of tech were asking: What does it mean to develop technology in an ethical way?

So far, that question has instigated a lot of talk, but 2019 is the year to take action. How? Here are seven do’s and don’ts for any company or individual dedicated to developing ethical technology in 2019.

  • Don't bother with a code of ethics
  • Do take a class (or just read the news)
  • Don't blame users
  • Do ask questions, and a lot of them
  • Do embrace transparency
  • Do get certified
  • Do turn users into owners

Read the full article about how to start taking action on ethics by Katharine Schwab at fastcompany.com.