CanuckHeaven
04-11-2006, 20:07
The more I read of this nonsense, the more I am concerned about democracy in the free world. This is truly scary stuff and people should stand up and voice their concerns while they still can.
Stealing votes = stealing democracy
What are YOU going to do about it?
In Washington state, where long-suffering voters are accustomed to re-counts, a recent poll by Strategic Vision said 73 per cent felt problems with the 2004 election hadn't been fixed. So why bother voting?
Election officials turned to electronic voting machines after the 2000 presidential election, when it took more than a month after polls closed to confirm George W. Bush the winner.
It was hoped the machines would reduce the need for re-counts and strengthen the election system. Instead, critics have attacked Diebold Election Systems, Inc. (DESI) for creating units allegedly prone to electoral fraud.
Perhaps most damning, Edward Felten, a professor at Princeton University specializing in computer security, has co-authored a paper on how a Diebold AccuVote-TS model can be hacked in one minute. (A video demonstration can be seen here (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8673726680080882009&hl=en)).
"Analysis of the machine, in light of real election procedures, shows that it is vulnerable to extremely serious attacks," the study reads.
"For example, an attacker who gets physical access to a machine or its removable memory card for as little as one minute could install malicious code: malicious code on a machine could steal votes undetectably, modifying all records, logs, and counters to be consistent with the fraudulent vote count it creates."
The paper also suggests such malicious programming would spread to other voting machines, tainting even more results. That's especially concerning because up to 40 per cent of voters nationwide are expected to vote electronically using paperless machines, according to elections officials.
Without a paper record, there could be no proof such machines were compromised.
DESI spokesperson Mike Morrill defended the company's machines, saying hackers will not be able to tamper with the units' voting results on Nov. 7.
"We have an extraordinary level of confidence," Morrill told The Washington Post. "They've proven reliable, and that's exactly what we expect in this November's election across the country."
But even without hackers, the machines seem to be prone to failure. In Maryland's primary vote in September, some electronic voting machines crashed, while others failed to open in time. That prompted the state's governor to ask residents to vote using mail-in ballots in November.
"When in doubt, go paper, go low-tech," advised Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.
He also asked that Maryland revert to a paper ballot system by Nov. 7, even though the state has invested US$106 million in its electronic voting system, according to the Post.
Hacking Democracy
This week, U.S. cable network HBO broadcast a documentary called "Hacking Democracy," in which writer Bev Harris examined complaints about the machines and how they have affected election results. Diebold demanded that HBO withhold airing the film until after the Nov. 7 elections, but HBO refused.
Dave Byrd, president of Deibold Election Systems, responded to the film through a letter posted on the company's website. He accused the film of being "fraught with factual errors and misrepresentations," and said his company was not offered the chance to review the film before it was aired.
Among his clarifications, Byrd said that more than half of all DESI machines will leave a paper trail, so in the event of a malfunction or hacker attack, voters will have proof of their electoral decision.
He also accused HBO of adding to an already dismal voter turnout problem in the U.S. by spreading fear -- in the 2004 election, 64 per cent of registered voters headed to the polls.
"Unfortunately, programs such as the HBO documentary, aired repeatedly days before a national election, serve only to scare and confuse voters," writes Byrd.
On Nov. 7, Americans will use thousands of DESI electronic voting machines, including 24,000 optical scan units and 126,000 touch screen units.
In total, 80 per cent of votes will be inputted into machines designed by DESI and two other companies -- Sequoia and ES and S.
Like DESI, Sequoia has also found itself in hot water, but not because of any alleged flaws in its machines. The U.S. government is now investigating allegations the company has ties to Venezuelan's socialist leader -- and friend of Fidel Castro -- Hugo Chavez.
Sequoia has repeatedly denied the charge.
Link (http://news.sympatico.msn.ctv.ca/TopStories/ContentPosting.aspx?newsitemid=CTVNews%2f20061103%2fmidterms_voting_061103&feedname=CTV-TOPSTORIES_V2&showbyline=True).
Stealing votes = stealing democracy
What are YOU going to do about it?
In Washington state, where long-suffering voters are accustomed to re-counts, a recent poll by Strategic Vision said 73 per cent felt problems with the 2004 election hadn't been fixed. So why bother voting?
Election officials turned to electronic voting machines after the 2000 presidential election, when it took more than a month after polls closed to confirm George W. Bush the winner.
It was hoped the machines would reduce the need for re-counts and strengthen the election system. Instead, critics have attacked Diebold Election Systems, Inc. (DESI) for creating units allegedly prone to electoral fraud.
Perhaps most damning, Edward Felten, a professor at Princeton University specializing in computer security, has co-authored a paper on how a Diebold AccuVote-TS model can be hacked in one minute. (A video demonstration can be seen here (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8673726680080882009&hl=en)).
"Analysis of the machine, in light of real election procedures, shows that it is vulnerable to extremely serious attacks," the study reads.
"For example, an attacker who gets physical access to a machine or its removable memory card for as little as one minute could install malicious code: malicious code on a machine could steal votes undetectably, modifying all records, logs, and counters to be consistent with the fraudulent vote count it creates."
The paper also suggests such malicious programming would spread to other voting machines, tainting even more results. That's especially concerning because up to 40 per cent of voters nationwide are expected to vote electronically using paperless machines, according to elections officials.
Without a paper record, there could be no proof such machines were compromised.
DESI spokesperson Mike Morrill defended the company's machines, saying hackers will not be able to tamper with the units' voting results on Nov. 7.
"We have an extraordinary level of confidence," Morrill told The Washington Post. "They've proven reliable, and that's exactly what we expect in this November's election across the country."
But even without hackers, the machines seem to be prone to failure. In Maryland's primary vote in September, some electronic voting machines crashed, while others failed to open in time. That prompted the state's governor to ask residents to vote using mail-in ballots in November.
"When in doubt, go paper, go low-tech," advised Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.
He also asked that Maryland revert to a paper ballot system by Nov. 7, even though the state has invested US$106 million in its electronic voting system, according to the Post.
Hacking Democracy
This week, U.S. cable network HBO broadcast a documentary called "Hacking Democracy," in which writer Bev Harris examined complaints about the machines and how they have affected election results. Diebold demanded that HBO withhold airing the film until after the Nov. 7 elections, but HBO refused.
Dave Byrd, president of Deibold Election Systems, responded to the film through a letter posted on the company's website. He accused the film of being "fraught with factual errors and misrepresentations," and said his company was not offered the chance to review the film before it was aired.
Among his clarifications, Byrd said that more than half of all DESI machines will leave a paper trail, so in the event of a malfunction or hacker attack, voters will have proof of their electoral decision.
He also accused HBO of adding to an already dismal voter turnout problem in the U.S. by spreading fear -- in the 2004 election, 64 per cent of registered voters headed to the polls.
"Unfortunately, programs such as the HBO documentary, aired repeatedly days before a national election, serve only to scare and confuse voters," writes Byrd.
On Nov. 7, Americans will use thousands of DESI electronic voting machines, including 24,000 optical scan units and 126,000 touch screen units.
In total, 80 per cent of votes will be inputted into machines designed by DESI and two other companies -- Sequoia and ES and S.
Like DESI, Sequoia has also found itself in hot water, but not because of any alleged flaws in its machines. The U.S. government is now investigating allegations the company has ties to Venezuelan's socialist leader -- and friend of Fidel Castro -- Hugo Chavez.
Sequoia has repeatedly denied the charge.
Link (http://news.sympatico.msn.ctv.ca/TopStories/ContentPosting.aspx?newsitemid=CTVNews%2f20061103%2fmidterms_voting_061103&feedname=CTV-TOPSTORIES_V2&showbyline=True).