Slashdot Mirror
Voting Machine Used in Half of US Is Vulnerable to Attack, Report Finds (wsj.com)
Election machines used in more than half of U.S. states carry a flaw disclosed more than a decade ago that makes them vulnerable to a cyberattack, WSJ reported, citing a report which will be made public Thursday on Capitol Hill. From the report: The issue was found in the widely used Model 650 high-speed ballot-counting machine made by Election Systems & Software LLC, the nation's leading manufacturer of election equipment. It is one of about seven security problems in several models of voting equipment described in the report, which is based on research conducted last month at the Def Con hacker conference. The flaw in the ES&S machine stood out because it was detailed in a security report commissioned by Ohio's secretary of state in 2007, said Harri Hursti, an election-security researcher who co-wrote both the Ohio and Def Con reports. "There has been more than plenty of time to fix it," he said.
While the Model 650 is still being sold on the ES&S website, a company spokeswoman said it stopped manufacturing the systems in 2008. The machine doesn't have the advanced security features of more-modern systems, but ES&S believes "the security protections on the M650 are strong enough to make it extraordinarily difficult to hack in a real world environment," the spokeswoman said via email. The machines process paper ballots and can therefore be reliably audited, she said. The Def Con report is the latest warning from researchers, academics and government officials who say election systems in the U.S. are at risk to tampering.
While the Model 650 is still being sold on the ES&S website, a company spokeswoman said it stopped manufacturing the systems in 2008. The machine doesn't have the advanced security features of more-modern systems, but ES&S believes "the security protections on the M650 are strong enough to make it extraordinarily difficult to hack in a real world environment," the spokeswoman said via email. The machines process paper ballots and can therefore be reliably audited, she said. The Def Con report is the latest warning from researchers, academics and government officials who say election systems in the U.S. are at risk to tampering.
(1) The paper can be quickly scanned by machine, for a same-day tally.
(2) However the stacks of paper ballots will provide a verifiable audit trail, which can be hand-counted if the machines' integrity is doubted.
The main flaw with today's system is NO audit trail exists (which is probably what the political bosses want).
"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - historian Evelyn Beatrice Hall
In good ole UK we use following system
* Every year little form through post to register folk in household for election register ( can state if entry not public info )
* Get card through post about next election
* On day of election go to polling station.
* If you have polling card fine if not any proof of id or even just name and address
* You get ticked off on paper list
* Given your bit of paper go into little booth
* Make X next to candidate ( for EU and local elections may be more than 1 )
* Fold up
* Put in box
* Someone outside will ask you who you vote for. I always decline ( exit poll I think it called )
Then those boxes are taped up and sent to counting station. Lots of paid folk count them out.
They announce vote about 8-12 hours later
Simples