PRESS: Digital ministry has problems with local software purchase

MOSCOW, Oct 16 (PRIME) -- Russia’s Digital Development Ministry has difficulties in the purchases of local software, including antivirus programs for the government due to the absence of a methodology of checking of software compliance with additional requirements introduced in 2017, business daily Kommersant reported on Tuesday, quoting IT market sources.

The requirements include the demand for office software to work under management of at least two operating systems – one from a special register of local software and from Microsoft Windows. Updates should be done only with consent of a user.

The ministry was supposed to approve an order and methodology of confirmation of program compliance with the additional requirements, but it did not happen. In June, a new government ruling came in force, obliging the ministry to purchase office software and programs in a centralized manner, and they must meet the additional requirements.

The lack of a mechanism has left many government offices with expired licenses for local antivirus programs and without updates of antivirus bases. The government did not receive money for the purchase of products, because they cannot do it anymore under the ruling.

Market participants said the new system of software purchase is too complicated.

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