Russia wants India's EVM technology for its 2018 presidential election

[RISING SUN]

I too working on all kind of hardware.. Not a single engineering professional will disagree that manipulating software is impossible... Downloading program in chip with certain motives is not at all impossible...

Yes it is very much possible in the same way that it can be picked easily. Why because once hardware is sent for chip embedding, it is checked and upon receipt it is cross checked against original standard. Any deviation is pretty much caught without much sweating. Also it is important to mention that no body knows where will the EVM machine be sent for voting activities. In India no party fights over all seats. So if person doesn't know whether their supporting party will be fielding their candidate in the vote, on the place this machine will be sent. In short here in India machines are allocated to poling stations only after long receipt from the chip vendors.

 

[T-Rex]

Even if executive branch is honest, political parties will have options of doing fraud as has been happening in past. Now with automated machines that malpractice can't be forced. Please refer to previous elections for reference. If you require, I can also share the same. Thank you.

Covering up fraud when there are thousands of polling stations and millions of ballot boxes is very difficult. There are always some evidence left behind but in case of the EVM it is just a matter of pressing a button and the evidence vanishes forever.

 

[RISING SUN]

Covering up fraud when there are thousands of polling stations and millions of ballot boxes is very difficult. There are always some evidence left behind but in case of the EVM it is just a matter of pressing a button and the evidence vanishes forever.

If you are not aware how earlier paper trail was misused for malpractices, I will update you sir. Paper trail is simply acknowledgement evidence that the part you have voted for. However once a voter gets an paper trail, there are always poling agents just outside the door of poling booth, not station. They will immediately ask to check your paper trail and by this they identify which person voted for their party and which person didn't which ultimately leads to harassment of voters. And mind you poling agents are part of election structure, so you can't deny they entry as well. To stop this election commission came up with paper less voting system.

 

[T-Rex]

If you are not aware how earlier paper trail was misused for malpractices, I will update you sir. Paper trail is simply acknowledgement evidence that the part you have voted for. However once a voter gets an paper trail, there are always poling agents just outside the door of poling booth, not station. They will immediately ask to check your paper trail and by this they identify which person voted for their party and which person didn't which ultimately leads to harassment of voters. And mind you poling agents are part of election structure, so you can't deny they entry as well. To stop this election commission came up with paper less voting system.

To stop this or to make it easier to rig the election? The latter seems more likely.

 

[RISING SUN]

One needs physical access to control unit, seal breaking of unit, time and lots of technical knowledge. One way to tamper is manufacture units which are programmed to record wrong votes. There can be few defective but they are found when its checked in presence of candidates’ representatives before voting commence.

Tampering can’t be just done by pressing buttons in some sequence, so it can’t be done in polling booths with so many watchful eyes and within few seconds.

Data is stored in a chip inside control unit, votes are recorded in it using ballot unit. In strong room only control unit is stored and ballot unit is separated. So even if some one get access to strong room (which is sealed and watched by police and representative of candidates) and can replace the seals (as they are sealed), one can’t just reset the votes recorded and record votes again without ballot unit.

There are some videos which claims to demonstrate that EVMs can be easily tampered. Those are fake. First person can’t just get genuine EVM used by Election Commission in market to buy and show it can be tampered easily (we will question how the person got EVM?). There are few videos which shows the process on emulated EVM on screen. One can write such emulators to whatever they want. Even a good programmer can write and give us such fake emulator which gives our desired results. Those are not EC official EVM emulators or how EVMs actually work. Those are fake created by some people to just fool people to believe how easy it is to tamper EVM which is not the case.

To stop this or to make it easier to rig the election? The latter seems more likely.

No as a voter when I vote, I need confidentiality to ensure my life or relatives are threatened by some powerful politician/mafia. That can only happen when my vote trail doesn't reaches the poling agent present in poling station. You give your point how will you avoid it. From my side, I am already providing relevant information and will also post some informative links. My previous post is taken from Quora site.

It is almost impossible to hack/temper EVMs.

Some important steps Election Commission follows during elections.

1. Before every election, a first level checking (FLC) is done for every EVM to be used in the election in the presence of political parties’ representatives.

2. Candidates and their representatives are allowed to conduct mock polls on EVMs at the time of candidate setting and also before the actual poll on the poll day to satisfy themselves about the satisfactory functioning of EVMs being used.

3. Once the candidate setting is done, the Ballot Unit of the EVM is also sealed with thread/Pink Paper seals so that nobody has access to the inside of the Ballot Unit too. These Pink seals also bear signatures of representatives of political parties/candidate.

4. On the poll day, a mock poll by casting at least 50 votes is conducted at every polling station in the presence of the representatives of the candidates/polling agents with their signature and a mock-poll certificate to that effect is obtained from every Presiding Officer.

5. After the mock poll is over, another thread seal and green paper seals are put on the EVM to block access to all buttons on the EVM, except those, which are used for the conduct of poll. These paper seals and thread seals are allowed to be signed by the polling agents. After the poll is over, the Presiding officer presses the “Close” button on the EVM in the presence of polling agents. Thereafter, no votes can be polled in the EVM.

6. After this, the entire EVM is sealed. Candidates and their agents are allowed to put their signatures on the seals, which they can check for the intactness of the seal before counting. Candidates/representatives travel behind vehicles carrying EVMs from polling stations to counting storage rooms.

7. In addition to this, the strong rooms where EVMs are stored, for counting are also sealed and watched round the clock. The candidates and their representatives are allowed to put their own seals on the strong rooms. They are also allowed to keep a watch round the clock on the strong room. Security forces are deployed in multiple layers around storage rooms.

8. The representatives of candidates of all political parties are given opportunity to participate in FLC, Preparation of EVMs before poll, mock poll, etc.

Hence, it is almost impossible for anyone to hack/tamper the EVMs.

 

[T-Rex]

One needs physical access to control unit, seal breaking of unit, time and lots of technical knowledge. One way to tamper is manufacture units which are programmed to record wrong votes. There can be few defective but they are found when its checked in presence of candidates’ representatives before voting commence.

Tampering can’t be just done by pressing buttons in some sequence, so it can’t be done in polling booths with so many watchful eyes and within few seconds.

Data is stored in a chip inside control unit, votes are recorded in it using ballot unit. In strong room only control unit is stored and ballot unit is separated. So even if some one get access to strong room (which is sealed and watched by police and representative of candidates) and can replace the seals (as they are sealed), one can’t just reset the votes recorded and record votes again without ballot unit.

There are some videos which claims to demonstrate that EVMs can be easily tampered. Those are fake. First person can’t just get genuine EVM used by Election Commission in market to buy and show it can be tampered easily (we will question how the person got EVM?). There are few videos which shows the process on emulated EVM on screen. One can write such emulators to whatever they want. Even a good programmer can write and give us such fake emulator which gives our desired results. Those are not EC official EVM emulators or how EVMs actually work. Those are fake created by some people to just fool people to believe how easy it is to tamper EVM which is not the case.


No as a voter when I vote, I need confidentiality to ensure my life or relatives are threatened by some powerful politician/mafia. That can only happen when my vote trail doesn't reaches the poling agent present in poling station. You give your point how will you avoid it. From my side, I am already providing relevant information and will also post some informative links. My previous post is taken from Quora site.

It is almost impossible to hack/temper EVMs.

Some important steps Election Commission follows during elections.

1. Before every election, a first level checking (FLC) is done for every EVM to be used in the election in the presence of political parties’ representatives.

2. Candidates and their representatives are allowed to conduct mock polls on EVMs at the time of candidate setting and also before the actual poll on the poll day to satisfy themselves about the satisfactory functioning of EVMs being used.

3. Once the candidate setting is done, the Ballot Unit of the EVM is also sealed with thread/Pink Paper seals so that nobody has access to the inside of the Ballot Unit too. These Pink seals also bear signatures of representatives of political parties/candidate.

4. On the poll day, a mock poll by casting at least 50 votes is conducted at every polling station in the presence of the representatives of the candidates/polling agents with their signature and a mock-poll certificate to that effect is obtained from every Presiding Officer.

5. After the mock poll is over, another thread seal and green paper seals are put on the EVM to block access to all buttons on the EVM, except those, which are used for the conduct of poll. These paper seals and thread seals are allowed to be signed by the polling agents. After the poll is over, the Presiding officer presses the “Close” button on the EVM in the presence of polling agents. Thereafter, no votes can be polled in the EVM.

6. After this, the entire EVM is sealed. Candidates and their agents are allowed to put their signatures on the seals, which they can check for the intactness of the seal before counting. Candidates/representatives travel behind vehicles carrying EVMs from polling stations to counting storage rooms.

7. In addition to this, the strong rooms where EVMs are stored, for counting are also sealed and watched round the clock. The candidates and their representatives are allowed to put their own seals on the strong rooms. They are also allowed to keep a watch round the clock on the strong room. Security forces are deployed in multiple layers around storage rooms.

8. The representatives of candidates of all political parties are given opportunity to participate in FLC, Preparation of EVMs before poll, mock poll, etc.

Hence, it is almost impossible for anyone to hack/tamper the EVMs.

There's no need to harass or threaten if the result can be changed by pressing a button.

 

[RISING SUN]

The Election Commission, during Mr. Qureshi's tenure, organised a challenge. Anyone could go to the EC building and hack the EVM.

No one could.To compromise it, you need to take it apart, reprogram it and reassemble it. Not happening yet. Try doing that before CISF/CRPF troops defending a strong room where the machines are stored. Nope. Not happening.

Not the end of the story.

10 minutes before the poll actually begins, there is a mock poll on every booth where party representatives vote there. The results of this mock poll are then showed to these party representatives, and only once they are content is the actual poll carried out. Otherwise, there is a revote with a replacement EVM.

The reason why other countries don't use EVM's like Germany is not because of questions on the result, but the process. You can't see the votes being counted physically, which is technically unconstitutional there. Read the Court Judgements why EVMs are not used there, they have nothing to do with hacking or inaccuracy.

The EVM machine is not a computer, its a calculator, it can't be hacked per se, it is not connected externally to a network. It reboots every 10 minutes, and the rate of voting is capped so that irregularities don't take place. The machines are indegenous, and have had multiple changes for accuracy over time.In 2019, the EVMs will give you a reciept, a slip, where you can even crosscheck to whom your vote went. It is called VVPAT, and Subramaniam Swamy's Supreme Court petition lead to this. This reciept is submitted in a box, and can be counted if tomorrow someone comes up with doubts.Oh and yeah there are not just officials but paramilitary troops and webcams always on vigil.

I know of someone who claims to have hacked the EVM. To compare, if the EVM was a computer- he disassembled it, formatted it, took out windows and installed his own OS after installing a port that wasn't there. He didn't hack it, he made a new frickin machine.The EC and EVM are institutions par excellence.

Indian EVM uses micro controllers manufactured by Renesas(Japan) and Microchip(USA). These micro controllers have their firmware i.e. software code, stored within a One Time Programmable Non Volatile Memory OR field programmable read-only memory[FP-ROM].

https://www.quora.com/Can-the-EVM-machines-used-for-Indian-elections-be-hacked-tampered

Elections: How an Electronic Voting Machine Works
As the days of elections begin, voters line-up to vote for their preferred candidates. The entire voting process might be the very first one for many. One of the many interesting things about the process is the Electronic Voting Machine on which we place our votes.

Here we decode it for you: understand the working and advantages of an Electronic Voting Machine and why the Election Commission of India have made the switch from their conventional ways.

How does an Electronic Voting Machine work?

The voting machines used in India are a combination of two components. First component is called the Balloting unit on which the voters press the button. The other part is called the Control unit. This unit gives supervising power to the polling officer stationed at the poll booth.

The two units are connected by a five-meter cable. The voter places his /her vote on the Balloting unit which is placed inside the Voting compartment.

Previously, the polling officer used to issue a ballot paper to each voter. This is replaced by a functionality of the control unit. Now the polling officer presses the Ballot button which then allows the voter to cast a vote.

An EVM runs on 6-volt batteries to eliminate the need of any external power source. It is designed to record 64 candidate names and 3,840 votes at the max. The 64 candidate names can be split across (a maximum of) 4 balloting units connected in parallel, with 16 candidate names on each of the unit.

How does it tackle Bogus Voting?

To initiate the vote, the polling officer first presses the ballot button on the control unit. The balloting unit is then open for casting a vote. Once the voter presses any button on the unit, it is again locked for any further voting. Pressing any button again will not be counted as a vote.

This way, no registered voter can cast multiple votes for different or the same candidates.

How is it better than conventional voting methods?

No Bogus voting: The simple technology used in the balloting unit makes sure one person can cast only one vote.

No electricity connection required: Since the EVMs are powered by internal batteries, no electricity connection or other source is required. This ensures that the election process is not hindered even in the remote areas of the country where a power connection is not always available.

Saves Money: Though the initial investment cost of each EVM is high, it cuts up on a range of other expenditure related to the voting process. Eliminating the need of ballot papers (used in lakhs), transport and storage of these papers after voting, work force employed in counting of these votes and so on saves up a lot of money.

Easier transport: Carrying an EVM is much easier than a conventional Ballot box as they are lighter in weight.

Easier counting of votes: EVMs make it infinitely easier to count votes. A total count of the casted votes is stored in the internal memory of the unit. This data is later erased manually after the counting is done.

Longer Life: The shelf Life of an EVM used in India is said to be 15 years.

Ease of use: EVMs are much easier to use for the part population of India which is illiterate, as compared to the conventional ways of voting.

Display of result: The results of the voting can only be displayed once the voting process ends. This is ensured by two safeguards: First, the Result Button cannot be pressed until the Close button is pressed (which ends the voting for the day). Also, the Result button is sealed and can only be broken at the vote counting station.

Where does it lack?

Since a particular EVM unit can only hold a record number of votes, a candidate can easily know about the number of people that voted for him from a particular polling station. This may initiate different reactions from the winning party to different areas.

The results acquired by an EVM’s control unit are not transmitted electronically. They are instead tallied on the day of counting votes on counting booths.

How secure are Electronic Voting Machines?

As of now, Electronic Voting Machines seem to be a pretty safe option.

First, these machines do not work on the internet or are not connected wirelessly. So they cannot be ‘hacked’ by a hacker form anywhere.

The machines can only be ‘tampered’ with (if that is a possibility) but as these, machines are always kept under high security, nobody apart from the Election Commission of India has access to them.

Therefore for tampering an electronic voting machine, a person has to have an access to its unit, chances of which are next to negligible.

Furthermore, to have an impact on the election’s outcome, one will have to access multiple EVM units which is again not possible.

Also, the operating program of EVM’s controller unit is engraved permanently in silicon by the manufacturers. This program cannot be changed once the unit is manufactured, even by the manufacturer.
http://www.news18.com/news/tech/noi...hnology-safe-secure-voting-polls-1347786.html

How safe is the electronic voting machine (EVM)?
Down the years, netas across parties have claimed EVMs can be tampered with while Election Commission has strongly dismissed the allegations. As yet again doubts swirl over the safeguards for EVMs, here's a look at how the machines work and the two sides of the debate. EVMs used in India are exclusively made by two public sector companies. Randomized selection by computer determines which machines will be sent to which constituency, said former CEC SY Quraishi. After machines are sent out, the first-level check — months before polling — determines the proper functioning of EVMs. Party reps are present for the exercise. After final candidate lists are out, 13 days before polling, EVMs are again tested in the presence of candidate/party agent, who signs a certificate that EVMs are in order. Before dispatch to booths, EVMs are paper-sealed with a unique security number. Once it's on the machine, every candidate/representative has to sign on the seal. Mock poll before actual voting to check if buttons are rigged/malfunctioning.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com...achine-evm/more-doubts/slideshow/57691213.cms

There's no need to harass or threaten if the result can be changed by pressing a button.

How?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Electronicvotingmachinewithbucu.jpg

The Election Commission of India has stated that the manufacturers of the EVMs have developed a Totaliser unit which can connect several balloting units and would display only the overall results from an Assembly or a Lok Sabha constituency instead of votes from individual polling stations.

Election commision is testing the new VVPAT, on pressing of each vote, a paper receipt will be printed, which will be visible to the voters inside a glass but cannot be taken out of the machine.

For official details please refer to below link.
http://eci.nic.in/eci_main1/evm.aspx

http://eci.nic.in/eci_main1/evm1.aspx

 

[Arsalan mehmud]

Yes it is very much possible in the same way that it can be picked easily. Why because once hardware is sent for chip embedding, it is checked and upon receipt it is cross checked against original standard. Any deviation is pretty much caught without much sweating. Also it is important to mention that no body knows where will the EVM machine be sent for voting activities. In India no party fights over all seats. So if person doesn't know whether their supporting party will be fielding their candidate in the vote, on the place this machine will be sent. In short here in India machines are allocated to poling stations only after long receipt from the chip vendors.

Nothing is impossible what I said earlier.. and instead of machine better a manual system... after all it totally depends on the ruling govt how to check the standards...

 

[RISING SUN]

Nothing is impossible what I said earlier.. and instead of machine better a manual system... after all it totally depends on the ruling govt how to check the standards...

Not at all, rather in this part of world, election commission is totally separated from political class and all government machinery is under control of election commission directly.

 

[Arsalan mehmud]

Not at all, rather in this part of world, election commission is totally separated from political class and all government machinery is under control of election commission directly.

After all election commission is human being.. and human is know for doing great mischief...

 

[xenon54 out]

Sir, hacking can be only done if EVM machine or it's storage is connected to network as in case of other nations EVM systems. However in Indian election commission, all EVMs are standalone system without any sort of network, without any port connection facility.

There are also ways of hacking stand-alone systems, Iranian nuclear facilty wasnt connected to a network either.

 

[T-Rex]

There are also ways of hacking stand-alone systems, Iranian nuclear facilty wasnt connected to a network either.

You're right. Only those who cannot win through ballot papers and boxes want the EVM.

 

[RISING SUN]

There are also ways of hacking stand-alone systems, Iranian nuclear facilty wasnt connected to a network either.

That happened because Iranian IT infrastructure was a computer based architecture where you could re-right the codes. Here the thing is its more close to a calculator system rather than a computer system. So hacking concept doesn't work here.

You're right. Only those who cannot win through ballot papers and boxes want the EVM.

Bhai in EVM there is limit number of attempts can be made for voting. Its 5 per minute. So at max person can do is 150 fraud votes in 30 minutes and by that already backup security force will be there. It is not worth the risk. If suppose same is with ballot paper based. In minutes you can forcefully do the voting in thousands and can run away before security force is even in half way. It is all considering that booth capturing people are able to overpower all booth security and are able to capture the booth officer who always has the button which can stop voting within less than a second once clicked.

Kindly present some facts or some imaginative scenario which supports the allegations you are putting in EVM systems.

There are also ways of hacking stand-alone systems, Iranian nuclear facilty wasnt connected to a network either.

Also as per the below news link it spread through windows system, Windows-based Siemens Step7 software.
http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2015/ph241/holloway1/

 

[T-Rex]

Bhai in EVM there is limit number of attempts can be made for voting. Its 5 per minute. So at max person can do is 150 fraud votes in 30 minutes and by that already backup security force will be there. It is not worth the risk. If suppose same is with ballot paper based. In minutes you can forcefully do the voting in thousands and can run away before security force is even in half way. It is all considering that booth capturing people are able to overpower all booth security and are able to capture the booth officer who always has the button which can stop voting within less than a second once clicked.

I'm not talking about voting, it's the result I'm talking about. With the help of your EVM it can be changed just by pressing a button.

 

[T-Rex]

WHY ARE u worries. paper ballot or EVM both are haram under khilafat.
.

Since when did you qualify as an Islamic scholar? You are reading the script used by your Deash buddies. Besides, we are not discussing Khilafat here. Your post has been reported.