A mobile app that must be used during the epidemic has exploded. I really don't know if I don't check, and I'm shocked when I check it.
On February 12, Canada's Comptroller General Karen Hogan held a press conference to announce the use of personal information for people coming to Canada under the mandatory reporting of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) during the epidemicarrivecanThe audit of the mobile app revealed a number of serious problems.
There are so many places that are incredible.
The Comptroller General rebuked CBSA, as well as others involved in deploying the app, Health Canada and Public Services Procurement Canada"Repeated failure to follow good management practices in contracting, developing, and deploying the Arrivecan program".
After months of auditing,Until now, the Comptroller General has not figured out which company designed the software or calculated how much it was spent
CBSA had estimated that the app would cost about $54 million, but an audit found that at least it was59.5 million
The Comptroller General said that this is only a projected figure because there are problems with many invoicesThe actual cost may be even higher
Canadians are spending too much money on this software! ”
Hogan made no secret of his anger at CBSA:
"This is probably the first instance I've seen that so starkly ignores some of the most basic, fundamental policies and rules. ”
The financial records are rife with omissions.
For example, there is not even a written record of who actually developed the software, how much money it spent, how contractors were selected and who made the final decision to award the contract.
Eighteen percent of CBSA invoices don't have clear information to prove that the money was actually spent on the ArriveCan app.
The Auditor General suspected that these expenditures might have been used for other projects, totalling more than $12 million.
The most outrageous thing is that a contract of up to tens of millions was awarded oneA company of only two peoplegc strategies。
The company has no experience in developing software and is deeply involved in the bidding process.
In April 2020, GC Strategies was awarded a contract, but the Auditor General did not locate the tender submitted by the company. Another company submitted a bid but was not won.
There is also no record of why GC Strategies won the bid or which department made the decision to choose the company.
Even more troubling is the fact that GC Strategiesitself is the designator of the criteria for the tender contract
In a contract of up to $25 million, the company assisted in specifying a series of criteria, and these criteriaThere are a lot of limitationsHeavily biased in favor of GC Strategies
As expected, the company won the big deal.
In the submitted tenders, GC Strategies directly "copied and pasted** the requirements for subcontractors on several occasions.
The Auditor General found after an investigationCBSA** has a very close relationship with contractors, has been invited to dinner and other activities.
These ** did not inform their superiors of these activities"This creates a significant risk or possibility of a conflict of interest in the procurement decision"。
Although it cost a lot of money, the ArriveCan software didn't perform very well.
Between April 2020 and October 2022, a total of 177 versions of the app were launched, but many of them didn't have any test files.
An update in June 2022 resulted in 10,000 travelers receiving the wrong message that they needed to quarantine.
The cost of software development even greatly exceeds the cost of assembling an in-house team.
The average daily cost of developing this app by an external contractor is:CAD 1090, while the average daily cost of an equivalent IT position within the federal** is only $675.
The CBSA and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police have stepped in to begin an investigation into possible corruption issues involved in ArriveCan.
CBSA Chief Erin O'In his testimony to a Canadian House of Commons committee last month, Gorman expressed great concern about the preliminary findings of the investigation.
CBSA's internal investigation revealed that "there is a pattern of ongoing collaboration between certain ** and GC Strategies." They strive to circumvent or ignore established procurement processes, roles and responsibilities."
February** Dynamic Incentive Program