It is the main incentive of any company to maximize profit from selling a product with the most efficiency, but does that make it acceptable to go to unethical lengths? In particular, one controversial scandal that has made headlines over the past year is the issue concerning the automotive company, Volkswagen installing a software that allows vehicles to cheat pollution tests.

Nicknamed the ‘defeat device’ by BBC News business reporter, Russell Hotten, this specialized software allows the vehicle to detect a testing environment resulting in lower gas emissions and power usage. However, once the car is outside of the testing environment, the engines will emit “nitrogen oxide pollutants up to 40 times above what is allowed in the US.” The decision to install this software is unethical because it ultimately breaks the basic level of trust that should exist between a company or business and its consumers. Volkswagen has eventually admitted that approximately eleven million vehicles have been installed with the ‘defeat device,’ meaning that there is a significant amount of cars that surpass the acceptable carbon dioxide emission levels. This scandal is even more unethical because Volkswagen had previously campaigned the cars’ low emission levels as a marketing strategy. This false advertisement to the public has led Volkswagen to sacrifice the trust that was once held by consumers in exchange for temporary successes in sales. Although it may have been more efficient to create an engine that was cheaper to manufacture, Volkswagen has had to respond with the resignation of the Volkswagen group’s chief executive, Martin Winterkorn. In addition, the automotive group is facing considerable fines with a maximum amount of $18 billion on top of the potential resignation of more management board members. Although installing this device may have been logical at the time, Volkswagen is no longer viewed as a company that is honest with its customers and possesses integrity.

Overall, Volkswagen has lost its credibility with consumers and the automotive company because of the decision to install devices that go against the values of an ideal automotive company. This scandal is seen as unethical in the business world because it opted for an dishonest and fraudulent level of communication with the public.

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