Fujitsu workers had ‘unrestricted’ entry to Post Office department programs

Fujitsu workers had ‘unrestricted and unaudited privileged entry’ to Post Office department programs and will make modifications with out postmasters’ data, the general public inquiry heard yesterday.

The Post Office Horizon IT scandal inquiry was proven an inner Fujitsu doc from August 2002 which revealed ‘concern’ over workers in Fujitsu’s Software Support Centre (SSC) getting access to the dwell system which is ‘not absolutely audited, and in some circumstances, is unrestricted within the actions that may be carried out’.

It mentioned the employees, who offered third-line tech help to Post Office branches, have ‘unrestricted and unaudited privileged entry…to all programs together with Post Office counter PC’s’ and ‘there are not any computerized controls in place to limit person entry’.

It warns that because of this, Fujitsu is vulnerable to the ‘alternative for monetary fraud, errors on account of guide actions inflicting lack of service to shops [and] infringement of the information safety act’.

Fujitsu workers had ‘unrestricted and unaudited privileged entry’ to Post Office department programs and will make modifications with out postmasters’ data, the general public inquiry heard yesterday

Asked about this by inquiry counsel Jason Beer KC, John Simpkins, a group chief throughout the SSC, accepted workers ‘had distant entry to the dwell system’ however disagreed there was a possibility to commit monetary fraud or to entry sure knowledge.

Mr Beer informed the inquiry some 25 workers within the SSC group had ‘privileged entry’ to the dwell system, with Mr Simpkins revealing that they had ‘admin’ permission which was ‘the best stage of entry’.

Mr Simpkins, who nonetheless works for Fujitsu, additionally informed the listening to he believed a solution given to Second Sight – the forensic accountants initially referred to as in to analyze Horizon – concerning distant entry was ‘incorrect’.

Mr Simpkins was proven a doc which mentioned Second Sight wished to know whether or not Post Office or Fujitsu may ‘edit transaction knowledge with out the data of the sub-postmaster’

Referring to the doc’s proposed reply that ‘neither the Post Office not Fujitsu can edit transaction knowledge with out the data of the sub-postmaster’ Mr Beer requested Mr Simpkins if this was ‘incorrect’, to which he replied, ‘I imagine so’.

Asked about this by inquiry counsel Jason Beer KC, John Simpkins, (pictured) a group chief throughout the SSC, accepted workers ‘had distant entry to the dwell system’ however disagreed there was a possibility to commit monetary fraud or to entry sure knowledge

He was later requested about claims by Richard Roll, a Fujitsu engineer turned whistleblower, that workers would resolve frequent points in Horizon impacting department accounts by remotely enhancing transaction knowledge with out telling postmasters.

He insisted workers ‘did not make frequent modifications…I believe in 10 years, I’ve discovered proof of 28 monetary distant modifications and I additionally disagree that we did not inform the postmasters’, claiming he has solely seen one occasion the place this was talked about.

Earlier within the listening to, Mr Simpkins mentioned Fujitsu workers feared being ‘hauled over the coals’ after realising the Post Office was utilizing ‘manipulated’ audit knowledge to criminally examine sub-postmasters.

He accepted his group ‘downed instruments’ after studying the Post Office was utilizing knowledge that had ‘related’ materials lacking in its investigations.

The inquiry was informed knowledge which logged sub-postmasters’ transactions was ‘manipulated from its authentic supply’ and given to the Post Office in a ‘filtered’ format earlier than they used it in legal proceedings.

Mr Barnes mentioned sub-postmasters ought to have been informed of software program errors as and after they occurred, including: ‘The apparent factor is to ship a message to the postmaster that an error has occurred please contact the helpdesk’

The listening to additionally heard from Fujitsu software program developer Gerald Barnes, who had mentioned an inner memo in January 2008 that points with Horizon’s digital level of sale service have been ‘endemic’.

In his notes, he described the service as not being ‘resilient to errors’ together with ‘circumstances the place the error dealing with was not so good as it may have been’.

He mentioned he felt error dealing with ‘may have been achieved a lot better’ however that two colleagues he talked about this to ‘did not appear to suppose this fashion’.

Mr Barnes mentioned sub-postmasters ought to have been informed of software program errors as and after they occurred, including: ‘The apparent factor is to ship a message to the postmaster that an error has occurred please contact the helpdesk.’

Yesterday’s inquiry look by Fujitsu workers comes a day after the corporate’s bosses have been pressured into grovelling apologies over the scandal, which has been thrust again underneath the highlight by the current ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office. Fujitsu’s Europe boss Paul Patterson admitted his firm’s central position within the ‘appalling miscarriage of justice’, in a significant victory for campaigners.