For those who came in late, the UK is reeling from the confirmation that hundreds of innocent sub-postmasters were thrown in jail, branded as thieves and fraudsters, and forced to pay back thousands of pounds they never stole - all because of a dodgy computer system.

The Post Office used a faulty IT system called Horizon to accuse 736 hard-working staff of stealing from the till, falsifying accounts, and even money laundering. Some of them lost their homes, businesses, reputations, and even their lives due to the false allegations.

After a long legal battle, 59 of them have finally cleared their names and walked free from court - with more expected to follow. The government has also promised to pay them up to £100,000 each in compensation.

However, the British Chartered Institute for IT says that laws which assume computer evidence is always right must be changed to prevent more injustices like this. They also want the Post Office to lose its special powers to prosecute its staff, and face a full public inquiry into its shameful conduct.

Dr Sam De Silva, a top legal expert and BCS member, said: "The Post Office scandal shows the dangers of blindly trusting computers. The Post Office could escape it because the courts assumed the system was working well. But how could the staff prove it was wrong when even IT experts would struggle to do so?"

He added: "The Post Office acted like a bully, ruthlessly using its powers to go after its staff. This led to a huge miscarriage of justice. The question is, should the Post Office be allowed to prosecute anyone at all?"

BCS CEO Paul Fletcher said: "We demand accountability from the Post Office for ruining so many lives with its flawed IT system. We also want a review of how the courts treat computer evidence. The Post Office should have to prove that its data is reliable, not vice versa."

He added: "This is vital for public trust in IT, which is a great force for good in our society, especially during the pandemic."

BCS is not alone in calling for a statutory inquiry into the Post Office scandal. MPs, celebrities, and the Justice for Sub-postmasters Alliance, a group of victims and campaigners join them. Computer Weekly has also been exposing the truth since 2009.

The Appeal Court said earlier this year that the Post Office knew its IT system was unreliable but still brought criminal charges against the sub-postmasters based on its data.