Automated Election System in 2010

Assignment number 3

Your thoughts on automated elections with reference to the current situation ...

My views will concentrate on the field which I can mostly relate to which is the IT issues concerning the automated election.

Let’s first define automation.
According to Microsoft Encarta 2008 dictionary, automation means the replacement of human workers or a system in which a workplace or process has been converted to one that replaces or minimizes human labor with mechanical or electronic equipment.

For the first time in the Philippine Electoral history, an automated election system will be implemented next year.
And If you would ask me, I think it’s about time.

Since the Smartmatic and Total Information Management Corporation (TIM) have resolved their differences, the focus now concentrated on the preparations for the incoming election.

In regards with the 2010 election, there have been a lot of issues that has emerged ever since the Smartmatic-TIM consortium has been chosen as the partner of COMELEC on the automation for the next year’s election.

With only less than a year to prepare, there have been issues that have been specifically addressed by the IT community that concerns about the automated election system and I will give my opinion on some of them.

Can the Automated Election System (AES) be hacked?

Well for me, anything is possible in the realm of possibilities. On the context of hacking, I think all of us are aware that before we could hack a certain system you should have some knowledge about the inner programs or workings of the system you want to hack. There has been a debate whether to expose the code used by the Smartmatic-TIM to the public for scrutiny and expose the vulnerabilities of the code to computer security experts .
In my opinion, exposing the code to the public is a very serious security mistake. We are all aware that the more exposed any system is the more vulnerable it is from hacking. In a layman’s point of view, the more people look at it, the more people will know how to cheat the system.

Machine Vulnerability

As I watched the Reporter’s Notebook episode last Tuesday about the 2010 automated election, they mentioned that one of the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines that was tested emitted smoke during the standard machine testing evaluation. The Smartmatic claimed that the problem was not due to machine failure but rather a human error. They added that one of the people who tested the machine accidentally pulled out some wires that should not be pulled that caused the machine to emit smoke.
This notion appalled me because the concept that the machines may accidentally or intentionally be broken may cause to lose all the votes that have been casted on the machine. This could be a serious problem that should be addressed by the COMELEC and Smartmatic-TIM.

The use of removable memory..

Here's an excerpt from an article from THIS website
“..Smartmatic’s “newer model” has similar features with this machine – with one crucial difference: the proprietary security and counting software would no longer be housed and secured inside the machine itself, but contained in a removable memory card that would be in the custody of members of the Board of Election Inspectors (BEI), according to Ramon Casiple, chairman of the Consortium on Electoral Reforms (CER) which is also a member of the CAC.”

In my opinion, having the proprietary security and counting software on a removable memory such as a flash drive or a memory disk is a very dangerous security risk. It is a risk in a sense that having the important software outside the machine itself will make more vulnerable for alterations compared when it is on the machine itself where it is much harder to modify.

Pricey Pens and Modems..

Here is an excerpt on an article from the THIS site..
“ .. Apart from ballot-counting machines, the package also comes with high-powered servers for storing and canvassing votes, laptop computers and workstations for monitoring the data, printers for the paper trail, digital security cards, modems for data transmission, and even pens for marking ballots.
.. The modems, which retail for less than P2,500 in the market, are listed by TIM-Smartmatic at two to three times that price. At more than 50,000 units, the discrepancy comes out to an apparent overpricing of more than P320 million.“

Other people may say that 7B budget for the election is just a small price to pay for the most anticipated automation for 2010 election but having a discrepancy of over 320 million for modems alone? Are you freaking kidding me?! It is definitely a lot of money just to be given to the pockets of Smartmatic-TIM. This is clearly a corruption that is in front of our faces. This amount of money can be used to other meaningful things such as payment for manpower. What really bothers me is what does the COMELEC say to this? How could they allow this such anomaly when they are using the money of the people? It is really a shame if they allowed this.

Comelec to tap 80,000 IT people for 2010 elections

Here’s an excerpt from an article from gmanews.tv

“..With the obstacles to poll automation for the 2010 elections almost all cleared, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) is now looking for information technology (IT) people to handle the voting machines.
Comelec Commissioner Rene Sarmiento on Thursday said at least 80,000 IT personnel are needed to assist board of elections inspectors (BEIs) in the forthcoming polls.

He explained that the Comelec is allowed to tap IT-capable persons to be present in each precinct during Election Day.
Only those accredited by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) would be tapped, he added. Sarmiento said the mechanics of tapping IT people will be up for discussion at the Comelec very soon.”( Source: gmanews.tv)

In my opinion, it is just right that Comelec should seek the help of IT people to help in handling the voting machines.
It is a fact that some of the Board of Election Inspectors (BEI) are not familiar with the new technology that will be used in the election and may have problems dealing with the machines to be used that can cause delay of the election process. But the question is can the government really provide those number of man power during the election? I sure hope so.

This is just one of the evidences that the IT field is a fast growing industry and is now playing a big role in our community.