Outdated Drivers Are Slowing You Down
One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchWindows Errors? Fix Them Before They Spread
Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallNewly reported evidence has renewed comparisons between the Post Office’s Capture accounting system and Horizon: both were associated with unexplained accounting shortfalls, scrutiny of postmasters and reported criminal consequences. But they were not the same software. Capture was a local, in-house PC application; Horizon was a much larger networked system supplied by Fujitsu. The evidence also does not yet establish how many people were convicted in Capture-related cases.
What was the Post Office Capture system?
Capture was an accounting application developed in-house and used on PCs in some Post Office branches during the 1990s. The House of Commons Business and Trade Committee’s 2026 report says it was used in some branches from 1992 to 1999. The government’s Capture Redress Scheme uses a relevant period of 1992 to 2000 for eligibility, which is a scheme period rather than a definitive statement of when every branch used the system.
Horizon came later and was a networked system supplied by Fujitsu. The distinction matters: evidence of errors in Capture supports comparison of the consequences and the Post Office’s handling of discrepancies, but does not show that Capture and Horizon had identical designs or technical faults.
What accounting errors were reported in Capture?
A Kroll review identified at least two types of calculation errors: weekly cash-summary shortfalls and mismatches between physical stock and stock recorded by the software. The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) summarizes the overall conclusion as a reasonable likelihood that Capture could create shortfalls. That is evidence that the software could contribute to discrepancies; it does not establish that every discrepancy or every prosecution involving a Capture-era branch resulted from a software error.
What’s actually slowing this PC down?
Pick the symptom - the matching free tool is one click away.
#1 Best Overall
Computer Weekly’s 27 September 2024 report also compared training and how postmasters were expected to respond when accounts did not balance. The broader concern is that unexplained figures could prompt investigation and action against postmasters, even when the system itself could generate errors. The available evidence supports a parallel in the pattern and consequences, not a claim that Capture’s failure mechanisms matched Horizon’s.
How do the reported investigation and conviction figures compare?
Computer Weekly reported figures from separate Freedom of Information requests. These are secondary reports of FOI data, not a newly verified official series for Capture cases.
| Measure | Reported figure | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Investigations after Capture’s introduction | 191 per year on average in the six years after introduction; 378 in 1998 | Computer Weekly’s 2024 account of FOI data. It contrasted this with fewer than five investigations in four of the six years before Capture was introduced. |
| Convictions before and after Horizon’s introduction | Six per year on average in the seven years from 1991 to the year before Horizon; 52 per year in the 13 years after its introduction, until Post Office prosecutions stopped in 2013 | Computer Weekly’s 2024 account of a separate FOI request. The post-Horizon figure is not a Capture conviction total. |
The reported investigation increase after Capture’s introduction is a reason to examine the earlier system’s history. It is not, by itself, proof that every investigation or conviction in the period involved Capture or was caused by an accounting error.
How many people were prosecuted or convicted over Capture?
No reliable total for Capture-related convictions has been established. In December 2025 correspondence to Parliament, the CCRC said the available list was unreliable and that it was checking which system had been in use in relevant cases. The long gap since Capture was used makes identification difficult: in February 2026, a minister told the House of Lords, “The long time that has passed since the software was in use means that the full cohort of users is not known.”
On 27 March 2026, the CCRC said it had referred a second Capture-related conviction and had received 37 applications concerning pre-Horizon convictions. Those 37 applications are not 37 confirmed Capture cases; the system involved in some cases is still being established.
Horizon figures must also be kept separate. The CCRC’s overview, checked 8 October 2026, records 77 Horizon convictions referred to appeal courts and 69 overturned. They describe Horizon casework, not the number of Capture convictions.
Rank #4
Can people affected by Capture claim compensation?
The government’s Capture Redress Scheme is for qualifying postmasters who used Capture between 1992 and 2000 and suffered shortfalls due to software error. The government says relatives of deceased postmasters may apply. Eligibility depends on the scheme’s criteria; a shortfall during the period alone does not establish that it was caused by a software error.
Hansard reported the following scheme figures as of 31 January 2026. They are a dated snapshot, not live totals.
Best Value
| Application status | Number as of 31 January 2026 |
|---|---|
| Complete applications | 153 |
| Deemed eligible | 30 |
| Undergoing eligibility assessment | 123 |
| Full payments | 5 |
The Department for Business and Trade’s announcement describes the scheme and its application route: Capture Redress Scheme opens for postmasters. Ministers have said the full group of Capture users is not known, so the application figures should not be treated as a measure of the scheme’s eventual reach.
What if you were convicted over a pre-Horizon Post Office system?
If you have a conviction that may relate to Capture or another pre-Horizon system, the redress scheme is not the conviction-review route. Government guidance directs people with Capture-related convictions to the CCRC in England and Wales, or its Scottish equivalent. The CCRC’s pre-Horizon work includes cases where the system used still needs to be identified.
The CCRC’s 27 March 2026 update on its pre-Horizon casework and the earlier CCRC correspondence about the unreliable case list explain the distinction between an application, a confirmed Capture case and a referred conviction. A referral is a step toward review by an appeal court; it is not itself an overturned conviction.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
Recommended Free Tools
