Slovensko.Digital: Cheaper Alternative Exist to Address State of slovensko.sk /2

Bratislava, 3 February (TASR) - The Slovensko.Digital civil association has warned of the risk of the uneconomical use of public funds in the IT sector. The Investment, Regional Development and Informatisation Ministry has submitted a document to the government for discussion that is intended to document the critical situation with the slovensko.sk website. According to Slovensko.Digital, this is putting pressure on the government, which will be forced to approve the signing of prepared contracts with pre-selected suppliers without a proper public tender for more than €100 million. However, according to the association, there is a cheaper alternative. One of the main technical arguments for signing new contracts is said to be that the IAM (Identity and Access Management) module, for which no licences for higher performance have been purchased, is overloaded. "We've prepared a technical proposal that shows how to relieve the load on the IAM module with minimal intervention in the existing system. This alternative can partially resolve the situation not only quickly and significantly more cheaply, but above all without the risk of purchasing an undocumented and outdated product that only one supplier can maintain," said IT expert Jan Suchal from Slovensko.Digital. The civil association pointed out that the ministry, based on its claim that slovakia.sk is in critical condition, plans to use a direct negotiation procedure and award the contract to pre-selected companies without a public tender. According to information from Slovensko.Digital, contracts have already been prepared for signing at the National Agency for Network and Electronic Services (NASES). Slovensko.Digital emphasised that, under a standard procedure, alternatives should be considered long before contracts worth tens of millions of euros are signed. They also see the financing of this project as particularly problematic. "The use of EU funds for a project procured via direct negotiation will be extremely risky in this case, as the European Commission requires transparent competition. There's a real risk that we'll have to pay the entire amount of €100 million from the state budget. At a time when public finances are being consolidated in a harsh manner, such an expenditure, given the existence of cheaper alternatives, is an unjustifiable gamble," warned eGovernment expert Ladislav Kovar. The Informatisation Ministry has called Slovakia.Digital's claims misleading and untrue, stating that this isn't a case of "spending €100 million without a tender" or any pressure on the government, but a solution to real operational and security risks with the slovensko.sk website that require immediate action. "The ministry's approach is in accordance with the law, is professionally well-founded and will be fully documented. Slovensko.Digital is presenting simplified conclusions without responsibility for operating the system and without knowledge of all the technical and contractual contexts," it said. The ministry claims that if there were a cheaper solution that could resolve the critical state of the central public administration site, it would be the first to ask NASES to implement it. According to the Informatisation Ministry, Slovakia.Digital's proposal is a typical example of a hasty solution without knowledge of the context and without any responsibility for the outcome of its implementation. "We'd like to point to, for example, a plug-in from the association, which is a potential security risk and a great tool for scammers, even though at first glance it may seem like a useful solution for viewing your mailbox on your mobile phone," added the ministry. NOTE: This story has been extended to include the final three paragraphs. am/df