Reply #20: About the changing of dates

[BevHarris]

After writing that report, I tested the PE Explorer software, and could not get it to alter dates of anything but executables (in other words, couldn't see how it would be used to alter dates of the Access databases, but could get it to alter the dates of GEMS.exe and the .dll files).

I am unsure of the extent to which it is used, but I'm still concerned about the date changing. Within the audit log itself (the safeguard most touted by Brit Williams) changing the date is as simple as retyping it. We also know that some files have had their date-stamps altered, and these are not executables. Perhaps they used the date-stamp changer and figured out a way to make it work on the non-executable files, or perhaps they altered the date on their computer to make it date-stamp for a later date, but we do have records of files that are documentably changed.

In the updated article (http://www.blackboxvoting.org/access-diebold.htm) I removed the description of the date stamp changer because I haven't had time to play around with it. It changes date stamp on executables; they changed date-stamp on non-executables; I'm not sure of the method they used, so I corrected the article to be on the safe side.

There are many date discrepancies, some of which are clearly changes in the date-stamp, but some I really can't figure out. In the source code, you also see some discrepancies on dates as compared with changes, and you also see some oddities in the Access audit log. Can't do everything; I gave up looking at date-stamping and methods, and took the thing out of the report until later.

Bev