Essay topic: Professional accountants in Australia, and indeed around the world, have a responsibility to act in the public interest. They are expected to comply with the fundamental principles of integrity, objectivity, professional competence, due care, confidentiality and professional behaviour in all their dealings. However, in recent years ethics and professional integrity within the accounting industry have come into greater focus, including dealing with issues associated with online privacy and security. In many real-world scenarios, there may be a conflict between the ethical standards expected within the accounting profession and commercial reality. Task: Research and identify instances where ethical standards and commercial reality have been at odds and discuss how these situations should/could have been handled. Discuss how the practical