Allegations of unethical behaviour by a few Iranian scientists have recently been highlighted in the media, and notably in Nature (Nature 461, 578–579; 2009; Nature 462, 699; 2009; Nature 462, 704–705; 2009). Although the Physics Society of Iran (PSI), of which I am president, believes that such misconduct is rare among the Iranian physics community, we intend to prevent it by every means available.

The PSI has been sensitive to this issue since 2004, when its ethics committee was established and an internal report was submitted to the board of directors. The PSI committee is at present investigating the factors behind this multifaceted phenomenon.

Our attempts to control digressions within our community include publicizing a code of ethical conduct, increasing awareness by wider education and raising the issues at conferences. A panel discussion is planned for our annual national meeting this summer.

Since the committee report, a code of ethics has been posted on its website (see http://go.nature.com/EYYDjR, in Farsi) for discussion among PSI members. The final document is to be released soon after the annual meeting.

We have learned that similar efforts are already under way in several Iranian universities and institutes, including Sharif University of Technology and the Institute for Research in Fundamental Sciences, both in Tehran.