N. Don't write any code that isn't specified by a requirement. In a shop as large as VW, there are requirements.<p>Investigations are only beginning, but at this point it's plausible that some of the coders involved didn't quite know what the purpose of their code was. VW execs jumped early to try to hang this on "one or two software engineers."<p>Promote this publicly in the interests of "traceability," which everyone agrees is a good thing. Want it privately in the interests of self-preservation.<p>If a company wants something built, particularly in a regulated industry, they damn well better declare it.<p>Which reminds me, it will be interesting to see how the VW code in question relates to their requirements systems.