BBV: Really good overview article

[Eloriel]

Or at least I think it is. Good maybe to share with people who aren't up to speed. Good work at USC, IMO.

I have to thank dmr for this -- I was hoping she would post it, but I probably should have specifically suggested it.

Eloriel


Electronic voting poses dangers
Craig Stern

http://www.dailytrojan.com/article.do?issue=/V150/N31&i...

In the past few California elections, you or someone you know may have noticed the use of new DRE ("Directly-Recorded Electronic") voting systems. They're slick. They're easy to use. And as currently implemented, they pose a serious threat to the transparency of our voting system.

Many such machines have been adopted recently by counties looking to comply with the 2002 Help America Vote Act, which requires every polling place to have at least one voting machine that is accessible to the visually impaired.

However, there are big problems with DRE machines. For one thing, they are easily tampered with, both by hackers and by the companies that make them. Diebold Inc. is one of roughly four manufacturers of DRE voting machines currently competing for state endorsements. In the wake of a devastating Johns Hopkins report released in July, Maryland Gov. Robert Ehrlich demanded an independent review of Diebold's DRE voting machines.

The Johns Hopkins report claimed that Diebold's machines fell "far below even the most minimal security standards applicable in other contexts."

Science Applications International Corp. conducted the requested follow-up review and validated the Johns Hopkins' position. SAIC released a report stating that "the system, as implemented in policy, procedure, and technology, is at high risk of compromise."


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