The Post Office scandal, as it will be known from now on, is one of the most shockingly disastrous IT-based software issues ever recorded.
Simply put, mission-critical software cannot afford to go wrong.
A few years ago, I remember hearing stories of a radiotherapy machine that went wrong and gave the incorrect dosage. This happened because the nurse initially selected the wrong type of beam therapy and then went back to correct this before starting it. Little did the nurse know that because of a bug in the software, the system did not change the dosage to the correct dosage for the other type of beam therapy (which was meant to be decisively less for this type of beam therapy).
Another instance I heard of was a train system in which the brakes were misapplied when travelling down a gradient, meaning the train took longer to slow down going downhill than when on a flat. This resulted in a train colliding with an object on the track.
Now, we have heard of a less mission-critical piece of software, Horizon, as it is known, having bugs that have led to all sorts of complications, including many people being imprisoned for incorrect charges and even some people committing suicide. Whilst this is not mission-critical software, the repercussions of its failings have led to entirely undesirable outcomes.
What is Horizon?
Horizon is/was the Post Office's software for everything a branch does. It does everything from weighing parcels and calculating their costs to accounting for a branch's sales and expenditures. It was developed by International Computers Limited, which is now owned by Japanese computer manufacturer Fujitsu (I happen to own a Fujitsu laptop, and it's one of the best machines I have ever owned). The interface was designed for the person working behind the counter, so it had a minimalist interface (much like my old BE Commerce software). It made things like purchasing stamps, sending an item, etc, really easy. I don't know enough about what the software does besides what you'd expect a Post Office to do.
The role of Fujitsu in the UK is terrifying.
It pains me to be critical of a company I have long believed makes high-quality computer hardware, but they have been in the government's pocket in this country for too long.
You see, I already knew that Fujitsu was in charge of making the software for the NHS in 2004 and that it fell apart as I knew someone whose dad worked for the NHS IT team then. The software didn't work out and failed to meet the set initially out requirements. It cost the country a lot of money, too, and it continued to cost the country money for a long time after it was intended to. One issue this country always seems to have is that it accepts half-finished solutions that don't function as intended because they've paid for them. I hear of this all the time. They did this with the NHS software until 2008 when they finally decided to stop spending.
What happened with Horizon?
The Horizon software was bugged from day one. Many sub-postmasters reported this when they noticed shortfalls in the range of thousands of pounds when stocktaking and accounting.
Due to these discrepancies, the Post Office prosecuted at least 736 sub-postmasters between 2000 and 2014 based on the evidence provided by the Horizon software. These individuals were accused of theft, fraud, and false accounting, leading to convictions, imprisonment, financial ruin, and significant personal stress and suffering. Sub-postmasters consistently claimed that the discrepancies were due to faults in the Horizon system, but the Post Office maintained that the system was reliable.
As we saw recently in the news, these people were wrongly convicted.
Uncovering the truth
Sub-postmasters and investigative journalists eventually got to the bottom of the problem after bringing the issues to light.
Reports and studies carried out after the initial investigation showed that the Horizon software was not fit for purpose and had numerous bugs that could lead to unexplained financial discrepancies.
In 2019, 550 sub-postmasters decided to sue the Post Office after this information became public. The High Court ruled in favour of the claimants, acknowledging that Horizon was unfit for purpose and that the Post Office had been aware of its issues.
Mission-critical software that should never have failed
Although Horizon was not entirely mission-critical software, it did result in the Post Office preemptively opting to wrongly take action that led to awful circumstances for those who it attempted to convict, including suicide.
Software like Horizon is hugely important. If software like Xero or Quickbooks, for example, encountered a bug tomorrow that meant all payments added in were 3p short of being accurate, people's account data would be incorrect, which can result in HMRC fines. This software needs to work as intended, or there is no point in its existence. Consequences can come from this software not working.
