The package of bills adopted by the State Duma, which abolishes annual income declarations for civil servants and deputies in favor of a system of continuous automated control, may increase the effectiveness of the fight against corruption, but it carries digital risks. This opinion was expressed in a comment for TASS by Kirill Chernovol, Researcher at the Gaidar Institute's International Best Practices Analysis Department.
“From an anti-corruption point of view, this may increase the efficiency of identifying discrepancies, but there are risks associated with data quality, access security, and other risks of digitalization,” the expert said.
He explained that the new model involves abandoning the annual submission of declarations. Instead, information will be provided upon appointment to a position and then when specific grounds for verification arise: “For example, when purchasing real estate for an amount exceeding the income of officials or their family members,” Kirill Chernovol noted.
The basis for such control should be the Poseidon state information system, which accumulates data from a variety of sources. The expert also drew attention to the recommendations of the OECD, which, while recognizing the benefits of digital technologies and AI for identifying anomalies, requires transparency, risk management, and data protection in order not to undermine trust and create new vulnerabilities.