Does your Vote Count…wouldn’t you Want to Know?
I just watched an amazing, scary and astonishing TV documentary on HBO, “Hacking Democracy.” A small group of citizens curious and frustrated by the vote counting and tracking system, headed by a grandmother, asked the tough question that most public officials should have asked, but were afraid to ask: ‘IS YOUR VOTE SAFE?”. And..
The Answer Will Shock You
It will be showing again on (please check you local listing to verify times and channels)
HBO #504 – 11/2/06 – 10:00PM
HBO #502 – 11/4/06 – 10:00AM
HOB #501 – 11/5/06 – 7:00AM
The following is an expert taken from the producer’s website with their permission. For the complete article go to Public Interest Pictures (dot) Org.
“Hacking Democracy: This cautionary documentary exposes the vulnerability of computers – which count approximately 80% of America’s votes in county, state and federal elections – suggesting that if our votes aren’t safe, then our democracy isn’t safe either.
Electronic voting machines count 80% of the votes cast in America today.
But are they reliable? Are they safe from tampering? From a current congressional hearing to persistent media reports that suggest misuse of data and even outright fraud, concerns over the integrity of electronic voting are growing by the day. And if the voting process is not secure, neither is America’s democracy.
In 2002, Seattle grandmother and writer Bev Harris asked officials in her county why they had acquired electronic touch screen systems for their elections. Unsatisfied with their explanation, she set out to learn about electronic voting machines on her own. In the course of her research, which unearthed hundreds of reported incidents of mishandled voting information, Harris stumbled across an “online library” of the Diebold Corporation, discovering a treasure trove of information about the inner-workings of the company’s voting system…
In Florida, Supervisor of Elections Ion Sancho presided over a trial “mini-election” to see if the vote could be hacked without being detected. Before votes were actually cast, computer analyst Harri Hursti “stuffed the ballot box” by entering votes on the computer’s memory card. Then, after votes were cast, the results displayed when the same memory card was entered in the central tabulating program indicated that fraud was indeed possible. In other words, by accessing a memory card before an election, someone could change the results – a claim Diebold had denied was possible.
Ultimately, Bev Harris’ research proved that the top-secret computerized systems counting the votes in America’s public elections are not only fallible, but also vulnerable to undetectable hacking, from local school board contests to the presidential race. With the electronic voting machines of three companies – Diebold, ESS and Sequoia – collectively responsible for around 80 percent of America’s votes today, the stakes for democracy are high…
HACKING DEMOCRACY was directed by Simon Ardizzone and Russell Michaels;
produced by Simon Ardizzone, Robert Carrillo Cohen and Russell Michaels;
executive producers, Earl Katz, Sarah Teale and Sian Edwards; edited by Sasha Zik. For HBO: supervising producer, John Hoffman; executive producer, Sheila Nevins.”
Public Interest Pictures
2211 Corinth Ave., Suite 300
Los Angeles, CA 90064
ph: 310-312-5400
info@publicinterestpictures.org
Online Voting Security Takes a Quantum Leap
According to a recent article By Roland Pease of the BBC Radio Science Unit, “perfect secrecy has come a step closer with the launch of the world’s first computer network protected by unbreakable quantum encryption”.
The article, published on the BBC News website on 9 October 2008, talks about quantum cryptography and how it differs from the mathematically-based security systems used on today’s computer networks which are said to be extremely hard – but not impossible – for outsiders to crack.
Quantum encryption certainly sounds like the next generation of computer security but is it too early to be discounting traditional security measures and considering them sub-standard in comparison?
Ian Haughton, Managing Director of Corporate Mailing Solutions thinks not. Providing transactional mail and election services to a long list of blue chip financial institutions for several years means that Ian has been working at the core of an industry where data security is paramount. He says, “Amongst other things we’ve had to make sure our online voting system – Castavote – is based on absolute data security, otherwise our clients just wouldn’t entertain it. All voting data is secured by 128-bit SSL security certificates on servers that are protected by several of the very best hacker, fraud and malicious code safeguards.”
Castavote is a consumer-tested, custom-designed online voting system that offers voters a convenient, secure and modern online voting option that can be seamlessly integrated into any client’s website.
Getting down to the nitty gritty of security features, Castavote offers a cast iron interface including a random modulated entry system, a web server-run script to prevent incorrect data entries, a firewall-protected SQL database that holds no personal voter information, server-based scripting, and a web server that is managed by an internationally reputable company recognised as having one of the world’s most secure data centres.
Castavote offers exceedingly high levels of security together with a range of additional benefits that has made it attractive to various building societies and financial institutions.
Ian Haughton is the Managing Director of CMS Limited, providers of Castavote, a custom-designed, consumer-tested online voting system that can save on manpower and resources and at the same time encourage a greater voter response when used as part of postal ballot or election mailings. For more information visit http://www.castavote.co.uk.
