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US voting woes
Nov. 6th, 2006 02:07 pmA few interesting articles culled from the RSS feeds, just in time for the US elections.
E-Voting, As it Takes Hold, Faces Big Risks
Source: http://www.baselinemag.com/article2/0,1397,2051184,00.asp?kc=BARSS02129TX1K0000533
The US Defense Department is under fire for it's new Interim Voting Assistance System. The system allows overseas personnel to vote over the internet; however, the voting information is being sent via unencrypted email. A security analyst has said that "...the Defense Department's use of unencrypted E-mail will expose soldiers to identity theft, and creates the possibility that a hacker or foreign government may intercept a vote and change it." The Defense department has responded by stating that soldiers will be informed of the risks involved in using this system. One would think that the military would be a bit more paranoid.
Sequoia voting gear allows for ballot stuffing, calls it a "feature"
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/03/sequoia-voting-gear-allows-for-ballot-stuffing-calls-it-a-feat/
Also: http://cbs5.com/local/local_story_306015536.html
Also: http://www.chieftain.com/metro/1162631121/2
Apparently, several states have purchased AVC Edge voting machines which have an interesting feature... a yellow button on the back of the box that allows, according to activists, people to submit their vote multipe times. According to the company, it's purpose is to provide a backup route to submitting your vote in case the card reader fails. It also emits a loud beeping sound to alert others that it has been pressed. Poll workers have been instructed to listen for this sound and intervene if necessary. Moreover, each voter is given a keycard that can only be used once. This apparently means that only one vote will be accepted per card detected, avoiding the problem of multiple votes being accepted.
The Next Voting Debacle?
Source: http://spectrum.ieee.org/oct06/4663
Also: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=2601085&page=1
Also: http://www.timesreporter.com/index.php?ID=60095&r=0
Also: http://www.thetimesherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061029/NEWS01/610290301/1002
In January of this year, a law went into effect which states that you must be in the state's voter database or you cannot vote. In order to be included in the database, your registration record must match either the state's driver's licence record, or must match data from the federal database of all legal residents. So far, this sounds fine, but no system is perfect so there have been many cases of database mismatch which have resulted in legitimate voters being excluded from the voter database. Adding complication to the mix is that each state defines how mismatches are handled, or even whether a mismatch excludes the voter from the list. The result has been mass purges of voter databases in California, Iowa, South Dakota, Texas, and Washington, resulting in potentially tens of thousands of people disqualified in California alone. There has been considereable work invested into accounting for things like mispellings, but anyone who has used a spam filter knows that no system is foolproof. Add to this, reports that some databases have been successfully hacked (although it is believed that they could not have been altered), voters being dropped from the rolls if they move, and individual's social security numbers being inadvertently made public. I see lawyers making loads of money in the near future.
Florida Diebold machines help you pick the right candidate
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/30/florida-diebold-machines-help-you-pick-the-right-candidate/
Some Diebold voting machines (used in Maryland, Georgia, Alaska, and Florida) have been reassigning Republican votes to Democrat candidates. The problem appears on the confirmation screen so the careful voter will catch it. In one case, the voter had to make three attempts to finally get their choice of candidate selected. Apparently, the problem is that the screen is not showing the results tallied internally so although the vote is correct, it is being displayed incorrectly. Of course, there is no way to know this so the safest approach is to have the poll worker intervene by recalibrating the display. Moreover, the extent of this problem is not likely to be known because there is no process for recording or reporting these errors. Ah, yes, the democratic process, where you have the right to vote for the person of my choice...
Military Ballots' Privacy Risks
Source: http://www.defensetech.org/archives/002909.html
Returning the the problem of overseas military voters, soldiers outside the country can vote using a Federal Write In Absentee Ballot. Seems a good idea until one reads the instructions that come with it: "On military bases in the Pacific, Special Form 186 requires a service member to include his address, social security number, date of birth, and signature on the outside of that envelope." In other words, everything required to perform identity theft is conveniently written on the outside of the ballot. The result has been that some soldiers are refusing to vote in this manner. I would be curious to see the absenteee voter numbers compared to previous years.
State GOP: Missing voting machine cards in Memphis could be used fraudulently
Source: http://www.hendersonvillestarnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061105/NEWS0206/611050372
Apparently a set of 12 electronic voting cards have been stolen in Shelby County, Tennessee. The cards are designed to deactivate after one use so are not considered to be a significant secutiry risk.... unless someones manages to duplicate them so that fraudulent votes could be made. Impossible, right?
Voting Machine Worries
http://cfn13.com/StoryHeadline.aspx?id=19960
Some voting machines in Florida are experiencing an odd glitch... they do not reset to a consistent time. The result is that the recorded and actual time of vote can vary significantly. It seems that every time the machine was reset, the clock set itself back another hour so after 5 resets, the variance was five hours. They anticipate that this will not cause a problem on election day.
And on a lighter note: ELECTRONIC VOTING MACHINE SLAYS NINE
[Edit: See![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
siderea's post on the HBO documentary covering some of this at http://siderea.livejournal.com/412069.html. And watch the documentary... very entertaining and eye-opening, even for a Canadian.]
E-Voting, As it Takes Hold, Faces Big Risks
Source: http://www.baselinemag.com/article2/0,1397,2051184,00.asp?kc=BARSS02129TX1K0000533
The US Defense Department is under fire for it's new Interim Voting Assistance System. The system allows overseas personnel to vote over the internet; however, the voting information is being sent via unencrypted email. A security analyst has said that "...the Defense Department's use of unencrypted E-mail will expose soldiers to identity theft, and creates the possibility that a hacker or foreign government may intercept a vote and change it." The Defense department has responded by stating that soldiers will be informed of the risks involved in using this system. One would think that the military would be a bit more paranoid.
Sequoia voting gear allows for ballot stuffing, calls it a "feature"
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/03/sequoia-voting-gear-allows-for-ballot-stuffing-calls-it-a-feat/
Also: http://cbs5.com/local/local_story_306015536.html
Also: http://www.chieftain.com/metro/1162631121/2
Apparently, several states have purchased AVC Edge voting machines which have an interesting feature... a yellow button on the back of the box that allows, according to activists, people to submit their vote multipe times. According to the company, it's purpose is to provide a backup route to submitting your vote in case the card reader fails. It also emits a loud beeping sound to alert others that it has been pressed. Poll workers have been instructed to listen for this sound and intervene if necessary. Moreover, each voter is given a keycard that can only be used once. This apparently means that only one vote will be accepted per card detected, avoiding the problem of multiple votes being accepted.
The Next Voting Debacle?
Source: http://spectrum.ieee.org/oct06/4663
Also: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=2601085&page=1
Also: http://www.timesreporter.com/index.php?ID=60095&r=0
Also: http://www.thetimesherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061029/NEWS01/610290301/1002
In January of this year, a law went into effect which states that you must be in the state's voter database or you cannot vote. In order to be included in the database, your registration record must match either the state's driver's licence record, or must match data from the federal database of all legal residents. So far, this sounds fine, but no system is perfect so there have been many cases of database mismatch which have resulted in legitimate voters being excluded from the voter database. Adding complication to the mix is that each state defines how mismatches are handled, or even whether a mismatch excludes the voter from the list. The result has been mass purges of voter databases in California, Iowa, South Dakota, Texas, and Washington, resulting in potentially tens of thousands of people disqualified in California alone. There has been considereable work invested into accounting for things like mispellings, but anyone who has used a spam filter knows that no system is foolproof. Add to this, reports that some databases have been successfully hacked (although it is believed that they could not have been altered), voters being dropped from the rolls if they move, and individual's social security numbers being inadvertently made public. I see lawyers making loads of money in the near future.
Florida Diebold machines help you pick the right candidate
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/30/florida-diebold-machines-help-you-pick-the-right-candidate/
Some Diebold voting machines (used in Maryland, Georgia, Alaska, and Florida) have been reassigning Republican votes to Democrat candidates. The problem appears on the confirmation screen so the careful voter will catch it. In one case, the voter had to make three attempts to finally get their choice of candidate selected. Apparently, the problem is that the screen is not showing the results tallied internally so although the vote is correct, it is being displayed incorrectly. Of course, there is no way to know this so the safest approach is to have the poll worker intervene by recalibrating the display. Moreover, the extent of this problem is not likely to be known because there is no process for recording or reporting these errors. Ah, yes, the democratic process, where you have the right to vote for the person of my choice...
Military Ballots' Privacy Risks
Source: http://www.defensetech.org/archives/002909.html
Returning the the problem of overseas military voters, soldiers outside the country can vote using a Federal Write In Absentee Ballot. Seems a good idea until one reads the instructions that come with it: "On military bases in the Pacific, Special Form 186 requires a service member to include his address, social security number, date of birth, and signature on the outside of that envelope." In other words, everything required to perform identity theft is conveniently written on the outside of the ballot. The result has been that some soldiers are refusing to vote in this manner. I would be curious to see the absenteee voter numbers compared to previous years.
State GOP: Missing voting machine cards in Memphis could be used fraudulently
Source: http://www.hendersonvillestarnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061105/NEWS0206/611050372
Apparently a set of 12 electronic voting cards have been stolen in Shelby County, Tennessee. The cards are designed to deactivate after one use so are not considered to be a significant secutiry risk.... unless someones manages to duplicate them so that fraudulent votes could be made. Impossible, right?
Voting Machine Worries
http://cfn13.com/StoryHeadline.aspx?id=19960
Some voting machines in Florida are experiencing an odd glitch... they do not reset to a consistent time. The result is that the recorded and actual time of vote can vary significantly. It seems that every time the machine was reset, the clock set itself back another hour so after 5 resets, the variance was five hours. They anticipate that this will not cause a problem on election day.
And on a lighter note: ELECTRONIC VOTING MACHINE SLAYS NINE
[Edit: See
siderea's post on the HBO documentary covering some of this at http://siderea.livejournal.com/412069.html. And watch the documentary... very entertaining and eye-opening, even for a Canadian.]