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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 15, 2006 |
Contact: Lale Mamaux
Phone: (202)225-3001
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Wexler: Princeton Report on Security of Electronic Voting Machines
Report Concludes Electronic Machines Are Vulnerable to Hacking That Could Alter Mid-Term Elections
(Washington, DC) Today, Congressman Robert Wexler (D-FL) responded to a disconcerting paper published by Princeton Professor Edward Felton and two of his graduate students, who tested a Diebold’s AccuVote-TS voting machine and found ways to hack the machines to dramatically alter the vote count and even spread that virus between machines. In essence, Professor Felton’s research has shown that simple and relatively easy tampering could change the outcome of an election. According to Professor Felton, his independent research group was the first to obtain and test a touch-screen voting machine extensively. He found that malicious programs could be placed on Diebold machines by accessing the memory card slot and power button, both located behind a locked door on the inside of the machine. For example, a member of Felton’s research group was able to pick the lock in 10 seconds and install malicious software in less than a minute. In addition, Professor Felton found that the program could modify vote totals, causing the machine to break down as well as spread dangerous programs to multiple machines by piggybacking on new software downloads or an election file being transferred from machine to machine. Professor Felton concluded that hackers could be mitigated with better software, more restrictions on access to machines and memory cards as well as having a paper trail. (Please find a copy of Professor Felton’s report at http://itpolicy.princeton.edu/voting/)
Over the past 3 years, Wexler has been fighting for a paper trail in Florida. On December 7, Wexler appeared before the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, arguing that Florida is currently not in compliance with the Bush v. Gore standard and the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitution because 52 counties in Florida use optical scan machines that allow for a manual recount, while the other 15 counties use touch-screen voting machines that have a paperless system, which cannot be recounted in the event of a close election. The Appeals Court dismissed Wexler’s lawsuit, and he is currently in the process of consulting with his attorneys on a possible appeal to the United States Supreme Court.
“The mid-term elections are just around the corner; and, with an estimated 80 percent of Americans expected to cast their ballots on touch-screen voting machines this November, it is quite disconcerting that we still have no means in states such as Florida to conduct a manual recount in the event of a close election. Americans fully understand that it is more important for federal, state and local officials to ensure the accuracy of an election rather than promote a potentially flawed electoral process based on expediency or ease. It is not only negligent of this Congress to fail to pass legislation ensuring a paper trail, but in my own state of Florida, Governor Bush and Secretary of State Cobb have continued to stonewall any measure to fairly and accurately count votes on Election Day. I applaud Professor Felton for publishing this report. Clearly, this is an alarming wake-up call for all voters and is continued proof that without a tangible voter verifiable paper trail the accuracy of millions of votes will be in jeopardy on Election Day,” Wexler said.
Congressman Wexler is a senior member of the House International Relations Committee and is a member of the House Judiciary Committee.
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