Engadget http://www.engadget.com Engadget http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif Engadget http://www.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[FTC appoints Ed Felten as agency's first Chief Technologist]]>http://www.engadget.com/2010/11/05/ftc-appoints-ed-felton-as-agencys-first-chief-technologist/http://www.engadget.com/2010/11/05/ftc-appoints-ed-felton-as-agencys-first-chief-technologist/http://www.engadget.com/2010/11/05/ftc-appoints-ed-felton-as-agencys-first-chief-technologist/#commentsIt may come as a bit of a surprise to some considering that seemingly every company and government agency has one these days, but the Federal Trade Commission has never had a Chief Technologist. It's now finally filled that gap, however, and has appointed Edward W. Felten to the post. As you may be aware, Felten's a professor of computer science and public affairs at Princeton and the founding director of the university's Center for Information Technology, but he's probably best known for his efforts to expose problems with electronic voting machines, and for his vocal advocacy against DRM -- he also uses his Mii for his profile image on the Freedom to Tinker blog, so you know you're not exactly dealing with your usual government bureaucrat. Felten has actually already been serving as a part-time adviser to the FTC, and it seems like he'll now basically be continuing that role in a full-time capacity, with the FTC only saying that he will "advise the agency on evolving technology and policy issues."

FTC appoints Ed Felten as agency's first Chief Technologist originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 05 Nov 2010 15:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>chief technologistChiefTechnologistdiebolddrmed feltened FeltonEdFeltenEdFeltonfederal trade comissionFederalTradeComissionfeltenFeltonftcvoting machinesVotingMachinesFri, 05 Nov 2010 15:47:00 EST<![CDATA[Premier Elections Solutions pays up in Ohio Diebold suit, offers more faulty voting machines for free]]>http://www.engadget.com/2010/08/14/premier-elections-solutions-pays-up-in-ohio-diebold-suit-offers/http://www.engadget.com/2010/08/14/premier-elections-solutions-pays-up-in-ohio-diebold-suit-offers/http://www.engadget.com/2010/08/14/premier-elections-solutions-pays-up-in-ohio-diebold-suit-offers/#commentsMan, this is rich. Some two years after being sued by Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, Premier Elections Solutions (formerly, and more infamously known as Diebold) has decided to settle up. Way back when, Brunner alleged that the outfit's touch-screen voting machines weren't acting as they should, and she pointed to an investigation that proved at least 11 counties were dropped in past elections when their memory cards were uploaded to servers. As of now, Premiere -- which is owned by Election Systems & Software -- has agreed to pony up just over $470,000 to the 47 counties that touched its e-voting hardware, but that's hardly the kicker. Counties are also eligible for up to $2.4 million in free Premiere software for two years, and the company's even throwing in up to 2,909 free voting machines along with a 50 percent coupon for maintenance fees. Right, because the Buckeye State is so anxious to start using the machines it found so faulty to begin with. Makes total sense.

Update: We've learned from someone inside of Ohio elections that 11 counties experienced a failed upload of results from a memory card during the unofficial canvas (election night), but those results were recovered during the official canvas several days later. The statewide results included all counties. And know you know.

Premier Elections Solutions pays up in Ohio Diebold suit, offers more faulty voting machines for free originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 14 Aug 2010 16:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Diebolde-votingelectronic votingElectronicVotinglawsuitohioPremier Elections SolutionsPremierElectionsSolutionssettlesettledsettlementsuitvotingSat, 14 Aug 2010 16:08:00 EST<![CDATA[Diebold's e-voting machines violate GPL, good taste]]>http://www.engadget.com/2008/11/08/diebolds-e-voting-machines-violate-gpl-good-taste/http://www.engadget.com/2008/11/08/diebolds-e-voting-machines-violate-gpl-good-taste/http://www.engadget.com/2008/11/08/diebolds-e-voting-machines-violate-gpl-good-taste/#comments
Diebold just can't seem to keep its nose clean these days. The nation's largest manufacturer of ATMs admitted not too long ago what everybody already knew: that their e-voting machines were totally bunk. Apparently in the course of that investigation it emerged that the company also thought it would be a laugh to load the open source Ghostscript Postscript interpreter software into those faulty machines without releasing its changes or paying the proprietary usage license fee -- leading Aritex, its developer, to file a lawsuit. It doesn't really instill confidence any further to hear that our nation's terrible electronic voting machines are running on stolen software, guys -- and to be honest, we're kinda starting to wish you'd get out of the ATM business, too.

Filed under:

Diebold's e-voting machines violate GPL, good taste originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 08 Nov 2008 00:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>diebolde-votingghostscriptGNU general public licenseGnuGeneralPublicLicenselawsuitsopenopen sourceOpenSourcesoftwarevotingvoting machinesVotingMachinesSat, 08 Nov 2008 00:02:00 EST<![CDATA[Diebold comes clean, admits that its e-voting machines are faulty]]>http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/23/diebold-comes-clean-admits-that-its-e-voting-machines-are-fault/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/23/diebold-comes-clean-admits-that-its-e-voting-machines-are-fault/http://www.engadget.com/2008/08/23/diebold-comes-clean-admits-that-its-e-voting-machines-are-fault/#commentsFor years, Diebold has embarrassed itself by claiming that obvious faults were actually not faults at all, and during the past decade or so, it mastered the act of pointing the finger. Now that it has ironically renamed itself Premier Election Solutions, it's finally coming clean. According to spokesman Chris Riggall, a "critical programming error that can cause votes to be dropped while being electronically transferred from memory cards to a central tallying point" has been part of the software for ten years. The flaw is on both optical scan and touchscreen machines, and while Mr. Riggall asserts that the logic error probably didn't ruin any elections (speaking of logic error...), the outfit's president has confessed to being "distressed" about the ordeal. More like "distressed" about the increasingly bleak future of his company.

[Via Techdirt]

Filed under:

Diebold comes clean, admits that its e-voting machines are faulty originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 23 Aug 2008 20:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>crackedDiebolde-votinghackedhackerissueohioPremierproblemvotevotingvoting machineVotingMachineSat, 23 Aug 2008 20:29:00 EST<![CDATA[Ohio report recommends scrapping electronic voting]]>http://www.engadget.com/2007/12/17/ohio-report-recommends-scrapping-electronic-voting/http://www.engadget.com/2007/12/17/ohio-report-recommends-scrapping-electronic-voting/http://www.engadget.com/2007/12/17/ohio-report-recommends-scrapping-electronic-voting/#commentsLike California and Florida before it, habitual swing state Ohio has just issued a report slamming its three providers of electronic voting equipment -- including, of course, renamed Diebold -- and recommending that the 50 counties which use them scrap the machines in favor of a paper-trail-leaving optical scanning method. The report, commissioned by Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, details the ways in which white hat hackers were able to infiltrate the systems, easily picking locks, using portable devices to manipulate vote counts, and even introducing "malignant software" into boards of election servers. Brunner's plan calls for the entire state's voting infrastructure to be overhauled by next year's presidential elections, a move likely to be lauded by touchscreen voting's many critics, but coming "about eight years too late, jerks -- thanks a lot," according to usually-even-tempered former candidate Al Gore.

Filed under:

Ohio report recommends scrapping electronic voting originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 Dec 2007 09:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>diebolde-votingelectionselectronic votingElectronicVotingohiotouchscreen voting machinesTouchscreenVotingMachinesvotingMon, 17 Dec 2007 09:32:00 EST<![CDATA[Diebold granted US patents for ATM control via cellphone]]>http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/29/diebold-granted-us-patents-for-atm-control-via-cellphone/http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/29/diebold-granted-us-patents-for-atm-control-via-cellphone/http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/29/diebold-granted-us-patents-for-atm-control-via-cellphone/#comments
Diebold may have mobile to ATM communications sewn up with a slew of recently announced patents. Using either a cellphone or PDA, users will be able to perform a handful of banking chores from controlling the ATM with your cell via its keypad and screen to using it make payments in a store. A standout in the crowd is the ability to "order" cash from an ATM without ever having to swipe your card and therefore reduce the likelihood of somebody capturing your card's data or see you entering your PIN number. We'd love to be able to pickup a latte using our cellphone as the vehicle for payment, but pre-ordering cash from an ATM seems a wee bit scary -- specially in light of Diebold's voting machine troubles.

Filed under:

Diebold granted US patents for ATM control via cellphone originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Aug 2007 14:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ATMCultureDieboldmobileWed, 29 Aug 2007 14:57:00 EST<![CDATA[Diebold says e-voting sales have failed]]>http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/17/diebold-says-e-voting-sales-have-failed/http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/17/diebold-says-e-voting-sales-have-failed/http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/17/diebold-says-e-voting-sales-have-failed/#comments
According to an AP article released today, Diebold, one of the prominent makers of the recently embattled electronic voting machines, says that the company has failed to make its e-voting business profitable. If you'll recall, Diebold machines have repeatedly been the target of various hacks, many of which have proven the machine to be susceptible to intrusion from outside elements and thus unreliable from a security standpoint. The company has reduced its revenue outlook by $120 million, and has plans to allow its e-voting unit to operate more independently, giving the team its own board of directors and possibly a new management structure. To complete the overhaul of the ailing division, the company will also change the name of the branch from "Diebold Election Systems" to the starkly different "Premier Election Systems." Diebold blames the "rapidly evolving political uncertainties and controversies surrounding state and jurisdiction purchases of electronic voting systems," for much of its problems... as opposed to the fact that they currently produce faulty, unprotected, and unreliable machines.

Filed under:

Diebold says e-voting sales have failed originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 17 Aug 2007 08:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>2008 elections2008Electionsdiebolde votinge-votingelectionelectionselectronic voting machinesElectronicVotingMachinesEVotinghackinghacksvotingFri, 17 Aug 2007 08:21:00 EST<![CDATA[California official gives ok to voting systems that failed security audit]]>http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/05/california-official-gives-ok-to-voting-systems-that-failed-secur/http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/05/california-official-gives-ok-to-voting-systems-that-failed-secur/http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/05/california-official-gives-ok-to-voting-systems-that-failed-secur/#comments
Yeah, remember those white hats that took out three separate systems with ease in a California e-voting system security audit? Well what do you know, the eminently wise and honorable California Secretary of State Debra Bowen up and decided Friday that those severely vulnerable Diebold, Hart, and Sequoia voting terminals would still be cleared for takeoff, provided the companies in question supply their machines with updated firmware, disabled access to unused ports, kill the wireless connections, and so on. So basically, the companies that deny up and down their voting systems are even vulnerable are now directly responsible for making them less vulnerable per seemingly vague security-hardening guidelines. As usual, we suggest preempt these fools' garbage tech entirely and go low-fi on it: if you suspect your district is or will be using e-voting machines, send your votes by mail.

[Thanks, Daniel]

Filed under:

California official gives ok to voting systems that failed security audit originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Aug 2007 14:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>californiadiebolde-votingSun, 05 Aug 2007 14:45:00 EST<![CDATA[Fresh study (still) finds Diebold e-voting machines hacker-friendly]]>http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/01/fresh-study-still-finds-diebold-e-voting-machines-hacker-frien/http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/01/fresh-study-still-finds-diebold-e-voting-machines-hacker-frien/http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/01/fresh-study-still-finds-diebold-e-voting-machines-hacker-frien/#commentsThe fact that some individuals still have any level of faith left in Diebold is quite baffling, but in case you were looking for just one more episode to dash your hopes of a hack-proof voting machine, open wide. As fate would have it, a fresh study in Florida has found that even optical scan voting systems "can be hacked into," which is causing quite a bit of concern considering that touchscreen alternatives aren't exactly an option in the Sunshine State. Reportedly, the document noted that "official memory cards in the optical scan machines could easily be exchanged with ones altering the vote count," and it was also stated that Diebold must "deal with the flaws" by August 17th. Yeah, we're sure it's all over that.

[Thanks, Josh]

Filed under:

Fresh study (still) finds Diebold e-voting machines hacker-friendly originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Aug 2007 23:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>diebolde-votingelectionevotingfloridahackingvotevotingWed, 01 Aug 2007 23:27:00 EST<![CDATA[Voting machine producers criticize critiques]]>http://www.engadget.com/2007/07/31/voting-machine-producers-criticize-critiques/http://www.engadget.com/2007/07/31/voting-machine-producers-criticize-critiques/http://www.engadget.com/2007/07/31/voting-machine-producers-criticize-critiques/#commentsVoting machine makers scoffing at bad reviews? That's preposterous! Actually, it's not all that alarming to hear that Diebold, Hart InterCivic, and Sequoia Voting Systems all had less-than-amicable responses to a state study that "found that their machines could be breached by hackers." Of course, we're not exactly sure what all that groaning is about, as we've seen nothing but proof to back the investigation up. Nevertheless, Sequoia dubbed the review "an unrealistic, worst-case-scenario evaluation," Diebold kvetched that the study didn't look at its most recently developed software, Hart found "several inconsistencies, alternate conclusions, and errors," and Elections Systems & Software bypassed the rigmarole entirely by failing to provide their information to the secretary of state. Oh, the irony. [Warning: Read link requires subscription]

Filed under:

Voting machine producers criticize critiques originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Jul 2007 11:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>diebolde-votingevotinghackedhackerhartsequoiavoting machinesVotingMachinesTue, 31 Jul 2007 11:19:00 EST<![CDATA[Envelope-free ATMs popping up soon]]>http://www.engadget.com/2007/07/19/envelope-free-atms-popping-up-soon/http://www.engadget.com/2007/07/19/envelope-free-atms-popping-up-soon/http://www.engadget.com/2007/07/19/envelope-free-atms-popping-up-soon/#commentsWith all the chicanery that's been going on with ATMs of late, it looks like the machines are finally getting back at the humans. In a move that's already confusing creatures of habit, envelope-free ATMs are starting to pop up in highly-trafficked areas, and as the name implies, they require that your deposits not be stuffed into an envelope beforehand. Diebold, NCR, and, Wincor Nixdorf (among others) are beginning to roll out these newfangled machines, which cost some 20-percent more than typical ATMs and sport specialized scanners that can detect how much cash you're actually inserting as you slide your check / bills into its theoretical mouth. The biggest boon here is the drop in processing costs to banks, while customers are likely to be pleased with instant receipts and nearly-instant access to the fundage. 'Course, we're just counting down the days until yet another ATM trickster figures out how to convert a Hershey's wrapper into a $20 bill.

[Image courtesy of ABC]

Filed under:

Envelope-free ATMs popping up soon originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Jul 2007 09:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>atmbankcashdepositdieboldenvelopemoneyncrscanningwells fargoWellsFargowincor nixdorfWincorNixdorfThu, 19 Jul 2007 09:16:00 EST<![CDATA[California prepares to crack down on e-voting manufacturers]]>http://www.engadget.com/2007/05/09/california-prepares-to-crack-down-on-e-voting-manufacturers/http://www.engadget.com/2007/05/09/california-prepares-to-crack-down-on-e-voting-manufacturers/http://www.engadget.com/2007/05/09/california-prepares-to-crack-down-on-e-voting-manufacturers/#commentsIn an unprecedented attempt to shore up any possible flaws in its counties' electronic voting machines -- the same machines that have been examined and criticized nationwide on many occasions -- California will undertake a so-called "top-to-bottom" review of numerous systems from some half-a-dozen vendors, who must meet a set of seemingly rigid criteria if they want to receive certification for the 2008 election. Giving the proposed three-pronged approach -- initiated by Secretary of State Debra Bowen in collaboration with the University of California -- some real teeth is the fact that each of the three teams tasked with the actual work will be spearheaded by respected academics and leading private sector consultants, including none other than Princeton's Ed Felten, whose tireless efforts to expose the dangers of these shoddy machines are well known to readers of this site. Specifically, each system from manufacturers such as Sequoia, ES&S, and yes, everyone's favorite whipping boy Diebold will see a thorough review of their source code and documentation, along with what are being referred to as "red team penetration" attacks to test the terminals' hardware and software. Since companies are required to submit equipment for testing if they wish to partake in future elections, we could be seeing Diebold make the same begrudging exit from the Golden State as it did from North Carolina, for what we are not alone in suspecting is fear of exposing its flimsy code. Anyone who does choose to participate still risks being forced to make significant changes to their gear or perhaps even complete decertification, so when you Californians go to cast your votes in about eighteen months, don't be surprised if you have to mark up a piece of paper and drop it into a Equalivote-brand ballot box.

[Via Slashdot]

Filed under:

California prepares to crack down on e-voting manufacturers originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 09 May 2007 23:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>californiadiebolde-votingelectronic voting machinesElectronicVotingMachinesreviewsequoiatestingWed, 09 May 2007 23:11:00 EST<![CDATA[Diebold cries 'do over!' after losing Massachusetts contract]]>http://www.engadget.com/2007/03/26/diebold-cries-do-over-after-losing-massachusetts-contract/http://www.engadget.com/2007/03/26/diebold-cries-do-over-after-losing-massachusetts-contract/http://www.engadget.com/2007/03/26/diebold-cries-do-over-after-losing-massachusetts-contract/#commentsNow we know that we're not supposed to take pleasure in the misfortunes of others, but when habitually-shady voting machine manufacturer Diebold loses a $9 million contract and starts whining about it in court, well, we think it's okay to make an exception. As the nation's leading election thrower e-voting provider, old Diebold thought that it was a shoo-in to win the Massachusetts Secretary of State's bid for 3,500 terminals for disabled voters -- and was so shocked when the contract was awarded to rival AutoMARK, that it's actually going to court to have the contract overturned or revisited at the very least. The company's completely immodest argument against the state and Secretary William Galvin basically boils down to this: "Since we've beaten AutoMARK for contracts all over the country, it only makes sense that we get this one too -- and because we didn't, there must be some cheating going on." For his part, Galvin calls the suit "frivolous" and claims that the best candidate did in fact win: disabled voters who tested all the machines reportedly formed a consensus around the AutoMARKs, and those machines have the added benefit of employing the same paper ballots as regular units, helping to ensure users' privacy. Despite the fact that it has "no hard evidence of unfair treatment," Diebold is nonetheless seeking an injunction on the use of its competitor's gear (some of which has already been delivered), or optimally, a complete reversal of the state's decision. No timetable on a decision yet, but when Diebold's forced to crawl back to Ohio with its tail between its legs, we'll let ya know.

[Via Slashdot]

Filed under:

Diebold cries 'do over!' after losing Massachusetts contract originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 26 Mar 2007 14:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>diebolde-votingmassachusettsMon, 26 Mar 2007 14:18:00 EST<![CDATA[Diebold considering dumping e-voting unit; Engadget says PLEASE DO IT]]>http://www.engadget.com/2007/03/04/diebold-considering-dumping-e-voting-unit-engadget-says-please/http://www.engadget.com/2007/03/04/diebold-considering-dumping-e-voting-unit-engadget-says-please/http://www.engadget.com/2007/03/04/diebold-considering-dumping-e-voting-unit-engadget-says-please/#commentsApparently executives high up at Diebold, the company that brought untold amounts of frustration to voters and countless faulty elections across the US, are considering dumping their Diebold Election Systems business unit, which it seems is almost systematically attempting to tarnish its parent company's brand with its infamous e-voting machines. After strained relationships with government officials over the utter craptasticality of their boxen, Diebold expects to announce the future of DES early this year; although there's no way to guarantee the 150k deployed Diebold machines would be decommissioned if DES were dismantled or sold, we'd really like to see a progressive technology organization -- like, say, a major university, the Open Voting Foundation, or the EFF -- raise the funds, buy the assets, opens source the software, and ensure that by the time the 2008 elections roll around, every vote will be properly accounted for, even if cast on old Diebold boxes.

Filed under:

Diebold considering dumping e-voting unit; Engadget says PLEASE DO IT originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 04 Mar 2007 17:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>diebolde-votingSun, 04 Mar 2007 17:53:00 EST<![CDATA[Hacking e-voting machines can be hard, Diebold shows you how]]>http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/25/hacking-e-voting-machines-can-be-hard-diebold-shows-you-how/http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/25/hacking-e-voting-machines-can-be-hard-diebold-shows-you-how/http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/25/hacking-e-voting-machines-can-be-hard-diebold-shows-you-how/#comments
You know, we could almost admire Diebold's "in face of all odds" kind of determination to ignore the haters and continue to assert that its e-voting machines are secure -- but this is just taking it too far. Alex Halderman, who was part of a team that discovered Diebold was using a rather standard sort of hotel mini-bar key to "secure" its machines from tampering, has pointed out that Diebold is showing vote-tampering wannabes just how it's done. Halderman and company refrained from posting images of the actual key, just to deter any casual voting hax0rs out there, but Diebold one-upped 'em all by posting pictures loud and proud of the keys on its own website. You have to be a Diebold account holder to actually buy one, but anyone could copy the key design from the pic -- which sounded like a great idea to Ross, who made three homemade keys based on the online pics, two of which worked to unlock the Diebold machine. Care to comment, Diebold? Oh, that's right, you're doing that whole quiet, dignified thing. As an aside, up to one-third of the e-voting machines which were used widely in the Brazilian elections in October last year showed signs of manipulation, with all sorts of number disparities and obvious fraud or malfunction. Those poor e-voting machines just can't catch a break. Check out a video of this latest Diebold hacking after the break.

Read - Diebold reveals e-voting keys
Read - E-vote fraud runs rampant in Brazil

Continue reading Hacking e-voting machines can be hard, Diebold shows you how

Filed under:

Hacking e-voting machines can be hard, Diebold shows you how originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 25 Jan 2007 18:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>diebolde-votee-votinge-voting machineE-votingMachinehackhackingkeyThu, 25 Jan 2007 18:36:00 EST<![CDATA[Texas e-voting machines count votes three times for good measure]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/17/texas-e-voting-machines-count-votes-three-times-for-good-measure/http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/17/texas-e-voting-machines-count-votes-three-times-for-good-measure/http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/17/texas-e-voting-machines-count-votes-three-times-for-good-measure/#commentsIf you thought that November 7th was the final day that you'd hear about e-voting zaniness, you'd be incorrect. While a myriad of states (and foreign locales) have had their bouts with Diebold and other electronic voting machines, the internet hunting state is now reporting an oddity of its own. Apparently, voters using machines built by Election Systems and Software in Williamson County, Texas showed up three separate times to legally cast their votes for the same candidate, or performed some sort of "human malfunction" in order to make the machines think so, anyway. While we're inclined to think that the actual machines were the culprit, the company still insists that some form of "user error" caused each vote placed to be counted three times. Although the triplicates did not skew the percentages of votes cast for each candidate, it still seemingly signifies an apparent flaw in the e-voting system, yet election officials were quoted as saying that they'd "review their training procedures" -- you know, so we can all work together to circumvent the problem.

[Via TechDirt]

Filed under:

Texas e-voting machines count votes three times for good measure originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 17 Nov 2006 11:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ballotcandidatediebolde-votingerrorevotingproblemtexastriplicatevotevotingFri, 17 Nov 2006 11:50:00 EST<![CDATA[Voter smashes Diebold machine as e-voting problems crop up nationwide]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/07/voter-smashes-diebold-machine-with-cat-paperweight-other-proble/http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/07/voter-smashes-diebold-machine-with-cat-paperweight-other-proble/http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/07/voter-smashes-diebold-machine-with-cat-paperweight-other-proble/#commentsWith this being the first major election to see a significant portion of the population casting their ballots on electronic voting machines, you might expect some problems to arise with the notoriously buggy and untested technology -- and you'd be right. The New York Times is reporting that polling places across the country are experiencing difficulties with their voting equipment, and while we'd love to place the blame squarely on shady manufacturers like Diebold, Sequoia, and friends, it seems that the complications are actually due to human error as much as faulty hardware. According to The Times, Indiana appears to be the state having the most trouble today, with 75 precincts using incorrectly programmed smart cards and nearly half of Marion County's 914 precincts having trouble getting their machines to boot up in the first place. In New Jersey, meanwhile, Republican officials are claiming that Democratic Senator Robert Menendez's name was already lit up when some voters entered the booth, causing them to accidentally choose the wrong candidate. Other areas such as Cleveland, Ohio and Hartford, Connecticut were either unable to start their machines or found the touchscreens to be improperly displaying candidates' names, forcing election workers to move back to old-fashioned paper ballots.

The highlight of the day, though, has nothing to do with shoddy equipment and everything to do with a crazy voter who attacked a Diebold-brand machine in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Forty-three-year-old Robert Young, a registered independent, apparently believed that the e-voting machines had been deployed in a wild conspiracy by Republicans, and decided to make a statement by smashing the $5,000 device with a metal cat paperweight. A remorseful Young was quickly arrested by local police, and although the votes on the destroyed machine can still be saved, the feline paperweight did not fare nearly as well: officials have said that it will likely be impounded before being forcibly euthanized.

Read- Voting problems
Read- Cat-bearing voter

Filed under:

Voter smashes Diebold machine as e-voting problems crop up nationwide originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Nov 2006 17:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>breaking newsBreakingNewsdiebolde-votingelectionstouchscreensvotingTue, 07 Nov 2006 17:45:00 EST<![CDATA[Punchscan incorporates cryptography into e-voting]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/06/punchscan-incorporates-cryptography-into-e-voting/http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/06/punchscan-incorporates-cryptography-into-e-voting/http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/06/punchscan-incorporates-cryptography-into-e-voting/#commentsConsidering the disaster that has been e-voting, we're not surprised to see another firm stepping forward with a slightly less complex alternative to confidently casting your ballot. Reverting back to the less problematic methods of paper-and-pencil voting, yet offering up a way to electronically store and track each vote, David Chaum and his research team have unveiled the Punchscan system to hopefully solve the world's e-voting woes. The cryptographic solution involves a double-sided ballot which is split into two halves using a hole punch, giving you one side to take home. The "receipt" reportedly doesn't disclose which candidate you voted for, and allows you to logon once home to verify that your vote was indeed cast, and cast for the intended party. So if you're worried that your hard-earned vote may be heading to File 13 rather than being counted, maybe you should start politicking to get Punchscan going in your neck of the woods, and if you're still confused about how this two-faced encryption dealio works, just peep the video, yeah?

[Via Slashdot]

Filed under:

Punchscan incorporates cryptography into e-voting originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Nov 2006 10:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ballotcandidatediebolddisastere-votingelectionelectronic votingElectronicVotingpunchscansecurityvotevotingwoesMon, 06 Nov 2006 10:21:00 EST<![CDATA[Florida Diebold machines help you pick the right candidate]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/30/florida-diebold-machines-help-you-pick-the-right-candidate/http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/30/florida-diebold-machines-help-you-pick-the-right-candidate/http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/30/florida-diebold-machines-help-you-pick-the-right-candidate/#commentsApparently Diebold's problems aren't limited to Maryland, Georgia or Alaska -- what a shocker. Down in the Sunshine State, during a week of early voting before next week's nationwide midterm election, certain Diebold machines have been registering some votes for Democrats as selections for the Republican candidate. For instance, Gary Rudolf, a voter at a polling site near Ft. Lauderdale, tried to vote for gubernatorial candidate Jim Davis (D); however, when the Diebold machine gave him the final review screen, it showed his vote was about to be cast for Charlie Crist (R). The problem took three tries to get resolved with the help of a local poll worker. Mary Cooney, a Broward County Supervisor of Elections spokeswoman, informed The Miami Herald that it's "not uncommon for screens on heavily used machines to slip out of sync, making votes register incorrectly. Poll workers are trained to recalibrate them on the spot -- essentially, to realign the video screen with the electronics inside. The 15-step process is outlined in the poll-workers manual." Huh? How exactly does a computer -- one that is being used heavily for one day a year, and not a $100 PDA -- "slip out of sync" ? Further, no one in Broward County is even sure how large of a problem this is "because there's no process for poll workers to quickly report minor issues, and no central database of machine problems." Is it any wonder that major candidates are urging voters to vote the analog old-fashioned way?

[Via digg]

Filed under:

Florida Diebold machines help you pick the right candidate originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 30 Oct 2006 19:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>broward countyBrowardCountydemocracydiebolde-democracye-votingelectionsfloridamiamivotingMon, 30 Oct 2006 19:41:00 EST<![CDATA[Diebold secretly "fixed" glitches in 2005, yet problems persist]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/27/diebold-secretly-fixed-glitches-in-2005-yet-problems-persist/http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/27/diebold-secretly-fixed-glitches-in-2005-yet-problems-persist/http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/27/diebold-secretly-fixed-glitches-in-2005-yet-problems-persist/#commentsDiebold's had so many problems recently that we're not even entirely sure which problem this latest "solution" was supposed to fix -- nor if it actually ended up causing even more headaches. It came out earlier this week that Diebold acknowledged quietly "fixing" 4,700 voting machines across four Maryland counties in 2005: Allegany, Dorchester, Montgomery and Prince George's. The problem was that sometimes the voting machines lock up, or as The Washington Post puts it "The screen freezes do not cause votes to be lost, officials said, but they confuse voters and election judges who sometimes wonder whether votes cast on a frozen machine will be counted." The newspaper continues, saying: "Critics said it raises concerns about whether the state and company officials have kept the public adequately informed about problems with a system that cost taxpayers $106 million." Um, yeah. If you're say, a state government and you've just spent over $100 million to buy voting equipment that allegedly improves our previous archaic system of paper voting, you might want to make damn sure that it actually does the job, and that you know what's going on at every step of the way. Now, this new problem/solution apparently is unrelated to that other vexatious problem involving unpredictable reboots. So, despite Diebold's assurances that all problems have been taken care of, the Post adds: "Even so, the two leading candidates for governor -- Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R) and Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley (D) -- have called on voters to use absentee ballots in the election, citing uncertainties about the reliability of Maryland's system." That's just great.

[Via The Associated Press]

Filed under:

Diebold secretly "fixed" glitches in 2005, yet problems persist originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Oct 2006 21:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>democracydiebolde-democracye-votingelectionsmarylandvotingFri, 27 Oct 2006 21:01:00 EST<![CDATA[Ex-delegate gets Diebold voting code in mail]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/22/ex-delegate-gets-diebold-voting-code-in-mail/http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/22/ex-delegate-gets-diebold-voting-code-in-mail/http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/22/ex-delegate-gets-diebold-voting-code-in-mail/#commentsWith all the recent blunders and whistleblower interviews about the Diebold electronic voting fiasco, it would have been easy to believe that it couldn't get any worse for Diebold Systems. That's probably what Cheryl C. Kagan, an ex-Democratic delegate and an outspoken critic of Maryland's election chief, thought before she received a parcel containing the code that ran Maryland's electronic voting machines in the 2004 election, along with a note calling for her to "alert the media." Although Diebold Election Systems claims that the code is old and does not infringe the security of the current up-to-date system, the fact that it was sent at all exposes a fundamental security flaw in Diebold System's supposed "glitch-free" setup. The only viable solution to all this -- which would make voters happy and give Diebold Systems *some* credibility -- is if the code is released in an open source form. Even though we'd like to believe that the current version of Diebold's voting code (4.6) is more secure that the leaked code (4.3.15c), the litany of security failures on Diebold's part gives us little reason to trust them.

Filed under:

Ex-delegate gets Diebold voting code in mail originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 22 Oct 2006 19:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>CodeDieboldHackedHackingMarylandVoteVotingSun, 22 Oct 2006 19:11:00 EST<![CDATA[Dutch government orders reforms in response to hacked voting machines]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/15/dutch-government-orders-reforms-in-response-to-hacked-voting-mac/http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/15/dutch-government-orders-reforms-in-response-to-hacked-voting-mac/http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/15/dutch-government-orders-reforms-in-response-to-hacked-voting-mac/#comments
Even though the issue of electronic voting security has yet to be taken seriously in the United States (we're looking at you, Diebold), the Dutch government appears to be very concerned about the shenanigans that hackers recently pulled with one of Nedap/Groenendaal's old-school machines, and has taken several steps to ensure that the equipment is as hack-proof as possible prior to the November 22nd national elections. According to a translated article on the site Nu.nl, officials have ordered Nedap to double-check every single terminal, replace all of the weak software, and install unflashable firmware so that the simple "Diebold memory hack" can't be replicated in the Netherlands. Furthermore, all of the machines will be retrofitted with an iron seal that will presumably prevent unnoticeable access to their innards, and two additional independent checks will be performed to add another layer of redundancy: a certification institute will make sure that Nedap has performed all of the necessary upgrades, and the machines will be spot-checked for accuracy once again on election day. Finally, the Dutch intelligence service AIVD will reportedly look into the RF emissions that enable snoopers to wirelessly establish a vote tally, although it doesn't sound like the inquiry will have any immediate effect on this gaping security hole. Despite these changes and increased oversight, though, it seems that the voting group responsible for the original hacks is still not confident that all of the problems have been solved; we certainly see their point, however, we'd suggest that a government that at least acknowledges and makes moves to alleviate these serious concerns is already far more progressive than one that seems to be waiting around for an e-voting "Enron" before taking the initiative to sort out this significant threat to the democratic process.

[Via Slashdot]

Filed under:

Dutch government orders reforms in response to hacked voting machines originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 15 Oct 2006 21:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>diebolddutche-votingelectionselectronic voting machinesElectronicVotingMachinesnedapreformsthe netherlandsTheNetherlandsSun, 15 Oct 2006 21:13:00 EST<![CDATA[Dutch voting machines hacked to play chess]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/06/dutch-voting-machines-hacked-to-play-chess/http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/06/dutch-voting-machines-hacked-to-play-chess/http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/06/dutch-voting-machines-hacked-to-play-chess/#comments With as much fuss as we raise over the myriad of Diebold security and stability failures, it looks like we've got it pretty good in the States when compared to the e-voting methods of the Dutch. Their ES3B voting system is based on circa-1980's computing hardware, which seems to be rather lacking in the areas of physical and software security. A few hackers got a hold of a unit and essentially had their way with the machine. Their first order of business was installing a chess program, since Jan Groenendaal of the Nedap/Groenendaal company -- which manufactures the machines -- had responded to the hackers' claims of it being possible with a smarmy "I'd like to see that demonstrated." After they got bored playing chess against a weak sauce 68000 processor with 16KB of RAM, they installed their own "PowerFraud" app to demonstrate methods for generating phony election results, and then went on to do some RF reading that helped them discover ways to wirelessly detect which votes were being registered on the machines by spotting "spurious emissions" from the computer display whenever it gets refreshed. The hackers responsible were kind enough to recommend fixes for most of their hacks, but we would think a bit of a technology refresh could help these Nedap/Groenendaal guys immensely. Or maybe Diebold can give them a ring once they're done botching our elections and they can all work together to further their respective nefarious and democracy-ending aims.

[Via Hack-A-Day]

Filed under:

Dutch voting machines hacked to play chess originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 06 Oct 2006 18:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>chessdiebolddutches3bvoting machineVotingMachineFri, 06 Oct 2006 18:15:00 EST<![CDATA[Diebold sez "glitch-free," just don't touch those touchscreens]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/05/diebold-sez-glitch-free-just-dont-touch-those-touchscreens/http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/05/diebold-sez-glitch-free-just-dont-touch-those-touchscreens/http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/05/diebold-sez-glitch-free-just-dont-touch-those-touchscreens/#comments We're still struggling to see how Diebold can't manage to build a simple bit of voting software that works on their own hardware in this day and age of Doom-running iPods, but it seems they've managed to screw things up again. Apparently Diebold has gotten the machines to work relatively well together, but only when using a mouse. If the touchscreen is tapped, the machine loses contact with its peers. Diebold is touting this mouse thing as a fix, and is offering to provide 5,500 mice for their e-poll books if state officials in Maryland give the go-ahead. Unfortunately, during a recent mock election, a poll-worker tapped the touchscreen despite repeated warnings to the contrary, and screwed up the system, requiring a reboot which took 30 seconds. Critics say this fault could allow some voters to vote twice, because if the machine loses contact with its fellows when the voter checks in, their voting status might not be registered. The use of the machines is still up in the air, with state elections chief Linda H. Lamone stating confusingly yesterday: "I want to wait and rather not say today what we're going to do." Diebold is still trying to fix the touchscreen problem, but we're really not holding our breath.

[Via Techdirt]

Filed under:

Diebold sez "glitch-free," just don't touch those touchscreens originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 05 Oct 2006 10:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>dieboldtouchscreenvotingThu, 05 Oct 2006 10:47:00 EST<![CDATA[Diebold makes its e-poll book software "glitch-free"]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/27/diebold-makes-its-e-poll-book-software-glitch-free/http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/27/diebold-makes-its-e-poll-book-software-glitch-free/http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/27/diebold-makes-its-e-poll-book-software-glitch-free/#commentsAh, Diebold, our favorite democracy-threatening, gadget-making punching bag. Earlier this week, Diebold showed off a software fix to Maryland election officials of the company's new "e-poll books," a device to keep track of voter records and registration. The e-poll books previously had been marred by a glitch that caused machines in every precinct to freeze and reboot during the recent Maryland primaries, reports The Washington Post. However, there still remain two big problems that Diebold is mystified at: "why some units failed to communicate properly with one another, and why some access cards -- which voters receive after checking in and must insert into a voting machine -- 'did not encode.'" Yeah, that would be a problem, considering that these machines are crucial in, we dunno, the very foundation of our democracy. Also, for the record, Diebold says that its other voting machines "worked well," which in Diebold-speak means glitch-free but with the usual shoddy security.

Filed under:

Diebold makes its e-poll book software "glitch-free" originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 27 Sep 2006 17:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>democracydiebolde-poll booksE-pollBookselectionsevotingglitchesmarylandsecurityWed, 27 Sep 2006 17:26:00 EST<![CDATA[Rolling Stone interviews a Diebold whistleblower]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/24/rolling-stone-interviews-a-diebold-whistleblower/http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/24/rolling-stone-interviews-a-diebold-whistleblower/http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/24/rolling-stone-interviews-a-diebold-whistleblower/#commentsIn what is perhaps the most astonishing turn of events in the ongoing Diebold fiasco, a new article in the latest issue of Rolling Stone -- with extensive information direct from a named former company consultant -- makes one of the most damning cases against the embattled company. The article weaves an elaborate tale of how Diebold had at the very least some extremely skeezy deals signed in 2002 with the state of Georgia, which allowed Diebold to replace all existing voting equipment, and to speed things up by the fall election: "The company was authorized to put together ballots, program machines and train poll workers across the state - all without any official supervision." As if that weren't enough, days before the primaries, the president of Diebold's election unit, Bob Urosevich, personally distributed a patch to the elections software. The article goes on: "Georgia law mandates that any change made in voting machines be certified by the state. But thanks to Cox's [Georgia's Secretary of State] agreement with Diebold, the company was essentially allowed to certify itself." Before the election, the two Democratic candidates in the two major races (for one Senate seat and the state governorship) had been ahead in the polls, and on Election Day, Republicans won the two races by a slim margin -- and given that no paper trail exists there is no way to prove or disprove that the election wasn't tampered with in some way. And you wonder why we continue to insist on paper ballots for the time being?

Filed under:

Rolling Stone interviews a Diebold whistleblower originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 24 Sep 2006 01:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>bob urosevichBobUrosevichdemocracydieboldelectronic votingElectronicVotingevotinggeorgiahacking democracyHackingDemocracyrolling stoneRollingStoneSun, 24 Sep 2006 01:31:00 EST<![CDATA[Open your Diebold AccuVote-TS with a minibar key]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/18/open-your-diebold-accuvote-ts-with-a-minibar-key/http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/18/open-your-diebold-accuvote-ts-with-a-minibar-key/http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/18/open-your-diebold-accuvote-ts-with-a-minibar-key/#commentsRemember those guys from Princeton who recently dissected a Diebold voting machine and wrote a serious academic paper laying the smack downon our favorite shady e-voting company? The plot thickens with those Jersey brainiacs: after giving a presentation to some computer science colleagues last week, Prof. Ed Felten was approached by Chris Tengi, a member of the department's technical staff, who pointed out that the key that opens the AccuVote-TS voting machine is very similar to a key that he has at home. Tengi's key opened the voting machine, and upon further investigation, the Princeton posse discovered that both keys are actually a common office furniture type used for hotel minibars, electronic equipment and jukeboxes. Furthermore, said keys can easily be bought on eBay or from various online retailers. So, all you need to hack Diebold's crackerjack security is to spend a little cash on these keys, bring 'em to your next local election along with a cheap-o flash drive, and you can easily open the lock that houses that Diebold memory card while you're in the voting booth -- good times, hey? If your locality uses these machines, you may want to write your Congressional representative and your county authorities to alert them to this, erm, "feature" -- better yet, buy them one of these keys and send it along with your letter, inviting them to test it out for themselves!

[Via Boing Boing]

Filed under:

Open your Diebold AccuVote-TS with a minibar key originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 Sep 2006 16:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>AccuVote-TSdemocracydieboldevotinghacking democracyHackingDemocracysecurityvoting machinesVotingMachinesMon, 18 Sep 2006 16:07:00 EST<![CDATA[Researchers show Diebold voting machines unsecure, citizens shocked]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/14/researchers-show-diebold-voting-machines-unsecure-citizens-shoc/http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/14/researchers-show-diebold-voting-machines-unsecure-citizens-shoc/http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/14/researchers-show-diebold-voting-machines-unsecure-citizens-shoc/#commentsWe're all for hacking stuff, generally, but hacking democracy for malicious purposes is just plain uncool. While no one's definitively proven that such a scenario has ever actually happened in real elections, vote-hacking remains a distinct possibility, given the state of our electronic voting equipment. If you were unconvinced the last time we covered this, of just how shoddy these Diebold voting machines are, here's another arrow in our quiver: Princeton University researchers have taken apart a Diebold machine, examined it from every angle, written a new paper on its flaws and have come to the following conclusions: 1) Malicious code "can steal votes with little if any risk of detection." 2) Said code can be installed in one minute or less. 3) The Dieblod machines run Windows CE 3.0 -- so, they're susceptible to viruses. 4) Some problems would require the entire replacing of hardware, yet another security risk. Still though, we would love to see a debate between the two candidates in this fictitious election: George Washington and Benedict Arnold.

[Via Boing Boing]

Filed under:

Researchers show Diebold voting machines unsecure, citizens shocked originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Sep 2006 03:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>benedict arnoldBenedictArnolddemocracydiebolde-votingevotinggeorge washingtonGeorgeWashingtonhackingdemocracyprinceton universityPrincetonUniversitysecurity flawsSecurityFlawsvoting machinesVotingMachinesThu, 14 Sep 2006 03:27:00 EST<![CDATA[Diebold Voting Machine hacked in four minutes flat]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/06/diebold-voting-machine-hacked-in-four-minutes-flat/http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/06/diebold-voting-machine-hacked-in-four-minutes-flat/http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/06/diebold-voting-machine-hacked-in-four-minutes-flat/#commentsIt's an old adage in politics that you need truckloads of money to get elected. Apparently you can now buy an election for what you'd spend in a few days on cups of coffee. Black Box Voting found that given $12 in tools, four minutes, and a little determination, you can access a Diebold voting machine's memory card, remove and replace it without a trace. This new development really isn't all that surprising given that it's been shown that these machines can be hacked in more than one way, even by monkeys. Concerned citizens, just switch to absentee paper ballots from now on -- it may be low-tech, but it's a hell of a lot more secure going the "old-fashioned" way.

[Via Slashdot]

Filed under:

Diebold Voting Machine hacked in four minutes flat originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 06 Sep 2006 14:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>bev harrisBevHarrisblack box votingBlackBoxVotingdemocracydiebolde-votinghacking democracyHackingDemocracysecurity flawsSecurityFlawsvoting machinesVotingMachinesWed, 06 Sep 2006 14:38:00 EST<![CDATA[Diebold machines fail in Alaska primary]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/08/24/diebold-machines-fail-in-alaska-primary/http://www.engadget.com/2006/08/24/diebold-machines-fail-in-alaska-primary/http://www.engadget.com/2006/08/24/diebold-machines-fail-in-alaska-primary/#commentsWhen you hear the words "electronic voting machines" and "problems" in the same sentence, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to infer that our old friend Diebold is somehow involved. The latest chapter in the company's woeful history of security lapses and tampering accusations comes courtesy of Tuesday's primary election in the great state of Alaska, where several of Diebold's "high-tech" touchscreen units were unable to use their dial-up modems to upload voting results to the Division of Elections' central servers due to an inability to pick up dial-tones and "other problems." Apparently thirteen total precincts experienced the issues, forcing election workers to toil into the wee morning hours manually uploading their data and getting it to sync with the overall numbers. The Director of Elections, Whitney Brewster, attempted to reassure voters that the integrity of the process had not been compromised by pointing out that "just because they're not being uploaded doesn't mean they're not being recorded accurately." That's probably true, but with all the scrutiny and negative publicity surrounding the company, it's going to be hard to convince some folks that any election involving Diebolds's products is ever on the level.

[Via Slashdot]

Filed under:

Diebold machines fail in Alaska primary originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Aug 2006 17:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>alaskadial-up modemsDial-upModemsdiebolde-votingelectronic voting machinesElectronicVotingMachinesproblemsThu, 24 Aug 2006 17:21:00 EST<![CDATA[More security woes for Diebold]]>http://www.engadget.com/2006/08/01/more-security-woes-for-diebold/http://www.engadget.com/2006/08/01/more-security-woes-for-diebold/http://www.engadget.com/2006/08/01/more-security-woes-for-diebold/#comments
It's no secret that Diebold's electronic voting gear is, um, a little lax in the security department, and now a non-profit group known as the Open Voting Foundation has found "what may be the worst security flaw we have [ever] seen in touch screen voting machines" in the company's older TS model. Apparently these devices -- which produce no paper record of voters' choices -- contain a switch on the internal motherboard (pictured above, with handy onboard instructions) that would allow nefarious hackers to toggle between the two pre-installed boot profiles and "change literally everything regarding how the machine works and counts votes." Even worse, the board also sports a slot for external flash memory from which a third profile could be "field-added in minutes," allowing unsavory characters to overwrite certified files with their own data before switching the machine back to its unaltered state -- with no one the wiser. It looks like Diebold has two options for addressing this nagging problem: either they can open up their machines and source code to a thorough external audit and adopt the resulting suggestions (unlikely), or they can take the simpler route and just get their friends in Washington make it illegal for rabble-rousers like the Open Voting Foundation to play with their toys.

[Via The Register]

Filed under:

More security woes for Diebold originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Aug 2006 15:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>democracydiebolde-votingelectronic voting machinesElectronicVotingMachinesopen voting foundationOpenVotingFoundationsecurity flawsSecurityFlawsTue, 01 Aug 2006 15:41:00 EST