Preventing Corruption in Moscow (and around the World)

Many countries throughout the world have started to rely on polygraph examinations to increase reputability.

By Brian Del Rosario, Marketing —

Public sector corruption has become a major issue around the world. With the increase in government watchdogs, governments have started to make more efforts to boost the public’s perception of government employees as it relates to corruption. As of the year 2015, Russia is ranked 119 out of 168 countries on the Corruption Perception Index, with a score of twenty-nine, making it one of the most corrupt countries in the world. Efforts are constantly made by public officials to fight corruption, and at the beginning of the month, a Moscow city official has announced further efforts to fight corruption among government employees. The city government has ordered 94 percent of the government employees to participate in lie detector tests. As an effort used in previous years, city officials have announced that these examinations will be conducted again this year.

Lie Detectors’ Role in Fighting World-Wide Corruption

Public employees and officials in many countries have explained the important role that lie detector tests have in avoiding government corruption. Nataliya Sergunina, a deputy mayor in charge of economics in Moscow, said that “polygraph tests have become an essential part of preventing corruption.” Many government leaders agree with Sergunina. Last year, the Colombian government announced plans to conduct polygraph tests on seventy-two of its departments. The president of Colombia, Juan Manuel Santos, stated that these efforts would ensure that the world knows that Colombian government officials are not involved in criminal activity. Many countries throughout the world have started to rely on polygraph examinations to increase reputability.

Limits of Polygraph Tests

While polygraph examinations seem to be the solution to ensuring honesty in government activities, many countries may find this method to be cumbersome and expensive.A former program manager at the US Department of State explained that “the polygraph is ideal for crime-specific incidents. But because of cost, invasiveness, training and upkeep, it can’t be used on a large scale.” Lie detection is possible, but the polygraph might not be the correct method for fighting corruption.

EyeDetect, A New Lie Detector

With EyeDetect, costs for performing large-scale anti-corruption efforts can be greatly reduced. The tests are economical and reliable, helping countries be able to ensure integrity among public employees. With 85 percent accuracy, governments can test employees quickly without the use of invasive instruments that polygraphs examinations require. Corruption is a multi-billion dollar problem; it shouldn’t require that much to prevent it.

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Photo courtesy of Gabriel Rodríguez. (No alterations made)