The Ombudsman received a considerable number of complaints concerning the use of remote testing only for the 'pre-selection tests' in a selection procedure for recruiting EU civil servants (Assistants AST3 - EPSO/AST/154/22), organised by the European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO). The complaints concerned the practical implications of the decision that the tests should take place only remotely, as well as how EPSO dealt with both practical and technical issues that arose.

To address the various issues raised in the complaints, and as EPSO appears to be moving increasingly towards remote testing in selection procedures, the Ombudsman decided to open an own-initiative inquiry into the matter. The Ombudsman set out a series of questions to and sought to meet with EPSO with a view to understanding how it had prepared and determined the conditions of the test, as well as how it dealt with the various practical and technical issues experienced by candidates.