Page - 140 - in The Future of Software Quality Assurance

140 I. Schieferdecker • Computability • Correctness • Data Quality • Decision Sovereignty • Traceability • Fairness • Measurements • Real-Time Data • Data Series • Data Streams • Internet of Things • Digital and Digitalised Infrastructures • End Devices Sensors Actuators Data Algo- rithms Auto- matisms Fig. 1 Elements of software-based systems [23]. Sensors are part of the Internet of Things and generate different kinds of data such as measurements, series of measurements or data streams. Algorithmsuse thesedata in theircomputationsoras trainingdata.Thealgorithmsareconstrained by complexity, computability and performance limits and possibly by the (in-)correctness of the implemented computation logic and by the (un-)biased (training) data. Asa result, software-based systems offer automatisms for which it is essential to agree (and assure) decision sovereignty, traceabilityandfairness. Anydecision inrespect to theenvironmentcanfinallybefedviasoftware (into the cyberspace) and via actuators (into the environment) Such software-based systems use functionalities as being defined in (meta-) algorithmsandsteeredbydata (see Fig.1). These software-based systems are also called algorithm-based or algorithmic systems [23].Theyare beingused fordecision-makingsupportordecision-making a in socio-critical context (e.g. in elections), business-critical context (e.g. in online trading) and relevant to self-determination for individuals, organizations and nations. This raises the discussion about the necessary guidelines for the design,developmentandoperationof thesesoftware-basedsystems,whichmustbe understood in the interplay of technological, social and economic processes. They are and become increasingly critical for the whole human society and developed intoapublicgood[23]. In fact, most of the values designed and encoded into these systems stem from thesoftware engineeredby the businessowners,productowners, softwaredesigner and/or software engineers [24]. Software engineering is constituted mainly by (1) defining and constraining the software (requirements engineering and software specification), (2) designingand implementing the software (coding), (3) verifying and validating the software (simulation, model checking, testing, etc.) and (4) operating, maintaining and evolving the software. Software engineering does not need to follow a line of software engineering methods [25], but rather a line of valueconcerns [23]:ResponsibleSoftwareEngineeringshouldbeconstitutedby: 1. Sustainability by Design by people in power: A critical examination of these value inscriptions should serve as the basis for conscious, reflected valuations, also in order to realize values from the sustainability context. In addition to