Tax time IT problems strike again at Australian Taxation Office
Doug Dingwall
Tax Office staff have struggled with IT problems that struck the agency with slow internet and email, as tech woes continue to hobble it in the peak tax return season.
The Australian Taxation Office told staff on Monday that slowness and "intermittent issues" were plaguing its internal systems but had left the website unscathed for users lodging their tax returns.
More IT problems have struck the ATO this tax season. Photo: Louie DouvisSoftware causing the latest headaches for ATO staff during tax time included Siebel, Outlook, SharePoint, share drives and Internet Explorer.
The ATO said in a statement that technicians worked to fix the IT issues, and confirmed later on Monday afternoon that the problems had been resolved.
The agency developed "workarounds" to minimise disruption to customers phoning the ATO while it tried to fix its system, a spokesperson said.
"Most staff have not been directly impacted by this issue and have been able to work as normal. Alternative work arrangements have been made for staff unable to undertake their normal duties."
The ATO grappled with the problem after outages hit its IT system in early July, forcing the agency to take its tax return systems offline at its busiest season, while the Senate last week agreed to launch an inquiry into the government's troubled digital program and is expected to review the Tax Office's tech woes.
Major ATO meltdowns in December and July prompted widespread criticism and an admission from Mr Jordan that the ATO's reputation was being damaged.
In February, the ATO's website, online portals, Australian Business Register and business reporting channels were also unavailable for two business days, while a series of outages hit users on April 19 and four separate dates in May.
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