IG report claims VA wasted more than $7M in shoddy tech refresh

The Veterans Affairs Department wasted more than $7 million in hardware and software licenses, according to FCW.

The Veterans Affairs Department wasted more than $7 million in hardware and software licenses, according to FCW.

A 2015 complaint alleging that the department’s Office of Information and Technology was paying for redundant Windows enterprise licenses is what yielded the discovery.

Virtual desktop machines were replaced with individual desktops at some VA Consolidated Patient Account Centers. These desktops required individual Windows licenses, unlike the thin client interfaces they replaced, FCW reported.

The agency watchdog that made the complaint claimed that over $2.2 million was wasted on computers and about $5 million was wasted on licenses.