Washington Post: Security Of Electronic Voting Is Condemned

Security Of Electronic Voting Is Condemned
Paper Systems Should Be Included, Agency Says

By Cameron W. Barr
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, December 1, 2006; Page A01

Paperless electronic voting machines used throughout the Washington region and much of the country "cannot be made secure," according to draft recommendations issued this week by a federal agency that advises the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.

The assessment by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, one of the government's premier research centers, is the most sweeping condemnation of such voting systems by a federal agency.

In a report hailed by critics of electronic voting, NIST said that voting systems should allow election officials to recount ballots independently from a voting machine's software. The recommendations endorse "optical-scan" systems in which voters mark paper ballots that are read by a computer and electronic systems that print a paper summary of each ballot, which voters review and elections officials save for recounts.

Voters in Maryland cast ballots on electronic machines that produce no paper record of each vote; in the District and Loudoun County, voters can choose between using such machines and optical-scan systems. Other Northern Virginia jurisdictions, and many counties across the state, use electronic voting systems exclusively.

more at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/30/AR2006113001637.html?nav=rss_nation

:kick:

voting. Glad to see this piece...finally!

Cuz we're here smiling with you.

you typed my thoughts before I thought of them. :)

Phew.

4th rec.

.

He was the company president before he was senator.

Security experts have been saying this for years. Maybe people will be willing to take NIST more seriously.