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Post Office scandal in 2024 – part 1: A year in the mainstream
Read this year’s 10 most read Computer Weekly articles about the Post Office Horizon IT scandal
This year saw a scandal in the making for over 20 years finally arrive in the public consciousness in January, where it has remained ever since.
The Post Office has been under huge pressure since a High Court judgment in 2019 proved that its error-prone computer system was causing unexplained shortfalls in subpostmaster accounts, but it wasn’t until the story was told through an ITV drama that the pressure reached the level we see today.
Computer Weekly has been investigating the scandal since 2008, writing more than 500 articles about it since the first was published in 2009. Almost 200 have been written this year alone.
Here are the top 10 most read Post Office scandal articles from Computer Weekly this year, the oldest of which was written in 2009.
1. First published in January 2024: Post Office Horizon scandal explained: Everything you need to know
With the nation clamouring for more information about the Post Office scandal following ITV’s dramatisation of events, Computer Weekly put together a comprehensive guide to the scandal. This has been the most visited page on the website this year and is regularly updated.
2. November 2021: Fujitsu escaped huge lawsuit because Post Office behaved so badly in Horizon scandal
People have shown a keen interest in some articles dating back to 2009. This one, which looks at Fujitsu’s role in the scandal, was published over three years ago.
3. March 2021: Post Office IT scandal executive forced out of job at Football Association of Wales
It was almost four years ago that Computer Weekly reported that controversial Post Office executive Angela van den Bogerd, who had sneaked out of the Post Office’s employ following a High Court trial, was forced out of a subsequent job as a result of her involvement in the scandal.
4. May 2024: Post Office directors went crawling back to Fujitsu when IBM project got complex, inquiry told
During a public inquiry hearing earlier this year, it emerged that although IBM had started work on the £100m project to replace Horizon in 2015, Post Office directors went back to Fujitsu for help when the complexities of the project became apparent.
5. February 2024: Post Office scandal: Phase four’s rogues’ gallery
The Post Office statutory public inquiry began in 2021 and heard its last oral evidence in November 2024. Through seven phases, the malign behaviour of the Post Office over the past three decades has been forensically scrutinised. Phase four, which examined its legal practices, is the subject of this article, which proved to be one of the most read this year.
6. May 2009: Bankruptcy, prosecution and disrupted livelihoods – postmasters tell their stories
Computer Weekly’s first investigation of the Horizon problems culminated with the publication of the stories of seven subpostmasters and their problems with Horizon. Although written 16 years ago, its content has never been more relevant than this year.
7. May 2023: Fujitsu staff had ‘unrestricted and unauditable’ remote access to Post Office branch systems
One of the most controversial elements of the scandal is the fact that Fujitsu staff had unaudited access to subpostmaster accounts. The Post Office denied this was the case for years, but as described in this article, the public inquiry heard the full details.
8. November 2023: Controversial Fujitsu contract with Post Office extended again
Fujitsu and its Horizon IT system are central to the scandal, yet after 25 years, the controversial software is still in place. This article from 2023 reveals just how difficult the Post Office finds replacing it.
9. November 2024: Post Office scandal not caused by software errors, says combative Fujitsu boss
The Post Office Horizon IT system caused unexplained shortfalls in branch accounts, but how people at the Post Office responded to these is what caused the scandal. This article describes how under-pressure Fujitsu boss spread the blame for the scandal during a recent public inquiry hearing.
10. January 2020: Alan Bates: The ‘details man’ the Post Office paid the price for ignoring
When the High Court battle between subpostmasters and the Post Office ended in late 2019 with victory for the former, Computer Weekly told the story of the campaigner who led the fight – then Alan Bates, but today Sir Alan.
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