UPDATE 2: Association says failure of Russian cash registers fixed

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VORONEZH/MOSCOW, Dec 20 (PRIME) -- The malfunction of online cash registers in Russia has been fixed, Alexei Fyodorov, president of the Russian Association of Internet Trade Companies, told PRIME on Wednesday.

“The malfunction has been fixed and neutralized, everything is fine,” he said.

Rokhan Chernigovtsev, PR director at the Retail Companies Association, said that the malfunction happened due to an error in software of cash registers. “Consequences of the error covered only a part of stores of large retail chains and have already been eliminated almost everywhere where they appeared,” he said.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Federal Tax Service registered a large-scale malfunction of cash register equipment produced by four companies in Russia, and allowed retailers and companies to operate without cash registers temporarily.

Retailer Magnit said separately that some of its stores were closed in the morning due to a cash register malfunction, and the company planned to reopen them later. According to data of cybersecurity firm Group-IB, cash register equipment malfunctions happened at fuel filling stations of Lukoil and Gazprom Neft, and at stores of electronic goods retailer DNS among many other companies.

The tax service distributed a letter to regional authorities notifying them of malfunctions of cash registers produced by Shtrikh-M, RR-Elektro, Triniti, and Izmeritel companies, saying that there was no fault of retailers and companies in the accident.

“Users that experienced a malfunction of cash register equipment have a right to continue settlements without the use of cash registers as it was no fault of their own,” the service said. The companies will have to form a correctional cash register receipt after operation of the equipment is restored.

Fyodorov also said that many retailers had to suspend operation of some stores and combined losses of the retail market may have amounted to up to 2.5 billion rubles. The malfunction covered no more than 10% of the market, he added.

(58.6117 rubles – U.S. $1)

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