Voting Insecurities

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWDEZqqqBHE]

UCSB researchers demonstrated how disturbingly easy it is to hack into Sequoia’s e-voting systems and delete or add votes with little more than a USB key. Given the fact that recent elections have been very close, and this upcoming national one looks also to be decided by a close margin, it’s absolutely inexcusable that our voting systems could be so easily rigged. Not only that, Sequoia has fought hard against having its equipment tested and verified independently. Can we really afford to be using such insecure machines in democratic elections, when the risk of abuse is so great?

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moEsgdzZ19c]

13 thoughts on “Voting Insecurities

  1. What the hell that is insane that is too easy.
    Thank god the democrats and republicans dont have access to loads of
    money and fanatical supporters or the american democracy would be in
    peril. Oh wait…..

  2. I think this is just an example of failing to apply old
    concepts to new technologies. This is like having a
    ballot box without a lock on it. And I think the solution
    to this problem quite simple; put a lockable access door
    over the ports.

  3. If EVERYTHING in the video is taken at face value, that’s pretty damming. However I don’t think many of those attacks are particularly feasible, as they require a lot of social engineering and a breakdown in several steps. You also have to take these “researchers” at their word about the contents of the USB, the firmware and the trojans. I don’t find the paper trail tests valid because of if the hack can register a vote different than the paper trail, then why does it ever show a difference from the voter’s on screen choice. I’m less concerned with the voting machine hacks as I am with the tabulator hacks. Its much easier to influence an election when you have access to all the votes ;p.

  4. Let me get this straight: Someone with system level access modifies some code and this is suposed to show how easy it is to hack a voting machine? If you have someone with system level acess, they had better be trusted or this little bit of non-hacking is the least of the damage they could cause.

  5. Wow. They REALLY should use some form of security screw to hold together that tabulator cabinet.

    The electronic machine exploits are more concerning to me. One only needs to place an infected thumb drive in the election headquarters to have a good shot at infecting a LOT of machines. That’s the point, you don’t really need system level access. You just need to be able to get it in the room

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