Claims documentary proof that Government haste prejudiced new online gambling site
In an attack on the British Columbia Provincial Government based on the failure of the online gambling site, Playnow.com which launched in July 2010 , an NDP opposition politician this week claimed to have documentary evidence that the failure was due to a rushed contract.
The NDP says documents show the Provincial Government rushed plans to launch the site despite concerns about the software developer's proposal. The Playnow.com site was shutdown in a matter of hours after the launch and the reason was cited as "a computer crash due to too many users". Officials later revealed the site was shut down as some players were able to see personal information of other players, and in some cases, gamble with money from other people's accounts.
The documents, obtained under a Freedom of Information Act request by the NDP, allegedly state that the team that reviewed the initial proposal by ALC Orbis Technology "highlighted a number of functional areas (both business and IT) which did not satisfy the British Columbia Lottery Corporation’s requirements." The specific concerns of the panel were blocked out on the released document, however the team decided to continue with the launch rather than spend more time looking for alternative contractors to build the site.
Lottery critic MLA Shane Simpson says that shows that government decided to rush ahead with the site and ended up risking the personal information and privacy of British Columbians reports CBC News.