In the traditional Pandora myth, Zeus ordered Pandora's creation. His command was part of the punishment imposed after Prometheus gave fire to humanity.
Zeus instructed Hephaestus to fashion Pandora from earth, and other gods supplied her with traits and abilities. The resulting figure was sent to Epimetheus, who accepted her despite Prometheus's warning to reject gifts from Zeus.
This episode fits the wider Greek mythological portrayal of Zeus as ruler of the gods and enforcer of divine order. Prometheus's theft of fire is treated as a breach of that order, while Pandora's arrival restores Zeus's control through a new hardship imposed on humankind.
The story does not describe Pandora as evil in a simple modern sense. She is a constructed instrument of divine punishment, and the poem places responsibility for the plan primarily with Zeus and the gods who carry it out.