Scandal in the EU: Border software could have Russian origins.

European prosecutors are investigating the collaboration of Atos' Moscow branch in building a control system at the EU borders, which will become the largest database of personal data in the European Union. According to obtained documents, Atos used its employees in Russia to purchase software for this secret project, which involves collecting and storing biometric data about all non-EU citizens on their territory.

Due to the disclosure of Russia's involvement, security concerns have been raised regarding the ambitious reconstruction of the EU borders. The launch of the system has been postponed due to technical problems.

The leak of documents confirms that Atos' Moscow branch operated under a license that allowed the FSB of Russia access to their activities in the country. Employees of the Moscow office were directly involved in procuring software for the EU border system, although permission from the EU is required for this.

The European Prosecutor's Office is investigating Atos' involvement in this project, but so far there are no charges. The EU border control system is supposed to collect data about the movement of every foreign citizen entering or leaving the EU and register their biometric and personal data, as well as visa status.

The EU's Internal Fraud Prevention Authority investigated allegations against Atos Russia. It was found that the measures taken by the EU-Lisa agency were insufficient to ensure security.

There is no sufficient evidence that Atos' Moscow branch continued to work on the system after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The implementation of the digital border control system in the EU has been postponed due to the unpreparedness of some countries.