mmalabanan
Independent research firm StatCounter revealed that the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s electronic system is inaccessible in half of the computers in the country, as reported by GMA News.
The BIR’s Electronic Filing and Payment System (eFPS) and Electronic BIR Forms (eBIRForms) are compatible with Windows Vista, Windows 7, or higher. However, the analytics firm found out that only 53% of all operating systems including desktop and mobile in the country utilize such systems as of March 2015.
Mac OS and the older Windows XP aren’t compatible with BIR’s system.
Despite heavy criticisms, BIR Commissioner Kim Henares insisted that compatibility shouldn’t be an issue since majority of computers in the country run Windows.
“Pumunta na lang siguro sila sa Internet cafe. Kasi ang karamihan (ng tao) ay may Windows,” Henares said in a live TV interview.
They should just go to an Internet cafe. Most people have Windows.
With the BIR aiming for a paperless tax system, Sen. Bam Aquino, investigative journalist Raissa Robles as well as computer programmers and IT experts have criticised several technical problems met by the new system.
Other Issues
In developing areas in the country, most people access the Internet through a mobile device. Instead of using desktops, people use the much cheaper Android smartphones or tablets. This is why mobile platform Android OS accounts for 20% of users, something that BIR failed to consider.
Paolo Barazon, a Manila-based software developer said that filling out the BIR forms in an Internet cafe poses cybersecurity risks for the user as well as the owner of the cafe. Users become at risk to potential spyware in the Internet cafe.
“Sino bang Internet cafe owner ang papayag na their customers will install software without their knowledge? That’s a valid concern that Henares can’t simply brush off,” Barazon added.
Who among Internet cafe owners will allow their customers to install software without their knowledge?That’s a valid concern that Henares can’t simply brush off.
Moreover, Barazon pointed out the old-school design of the eFPS system which is “best viewed with Internet Explorer versions 6 and up; or Mozilla Firefox 2 and up; or with Netscape versions 6 and up; and with 800×600 or higher resolution.”
According to Barazon, the specific versions of browsers are already old or obsolete.
As of March 2015, 62.54% of computer users use Google Chrome as reported by StatCounter.
