Oxebridge’s ISO Whistleblower program has successfully forced the shutdown of a Russian certification body that was operating on behalf of TUV, while falsely claiming IAF-based accreditation.
A whistleblower reported to Oxebridge that the Russian certification body “Inspecta” claimed to hold ESYD accreditation through its partnership with the accredited body, TUV Cyprus. That body is an official regional office for TUV Nord.
Inspecta website making multiple references to IAF member accreditation.
The Inspecta website included an official letter from TUV Cyprus granting it authority to operate in Russia, on behalf of TUV. Inspecta then claimed its Russian operations were covered under TUV’s accreditation, which was granted by the Greek accreditation body ESYD. However, an examination of ESYD’s scope of accreditation for TUV Cyprus did not include any offices or locations in Russia, making the claim fraudulent.
Letter published on Inspecta website showing them as official Russian representative for TUV Nord / TUV Cyprus.
Oxebridge reported the matter to ESYD and sent a copy to TUV Cyprus. ESYD did not respond, but TUV Cyprus replied, announcing it had shut down the Inspecta website entirely. Oxebridge later confirmed that associated Facebook posts and profiles advertising the Inspecta company were also deleted. This suggests that TUV Cyprus had some level of control over the Inspecta website.
The IAF announced that all accreditation activities in Russia must be done in compliance with international sanctions, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It has not, however, enforced the rule, allowing many Russian certification bodies to continue to operate with impunity. The IAF’s own Chair, Emanuele Riva, has refused to ensure his own accreditation body, Italy’s ACCREDIA, complies with the IAF mandate. The lack of enforcement has led many CBs and ABs to ignore international sanctions and the IAF rule entirely.
The shutdown of Inspecta represents a rare victory to uphold the credibility of ISO certifications in Russia, and reveals that while the IAF appears powerless to enforce its own mandates, private bodies like Oxebridge can step in to fill that vacuum.
