News & Insights
We’re Making History in Real Time.
Our timely insights share informed perspectives on the rapidly evolving story of Election Technology, as it unfolds.
Can iVoting Change the Electorate?
We produced this series of posts on Internet Voting or “iVoting” and its challenges because there is increasing interest in understanding how to innovate our election infrastructure. We concede it can be a potential and prospective advance in voting technology—a next frontier of elections for the 21st century if you will. And some even speculate this new way of exercising our civic duty and civil right could expand participation....
What Would a Realistic iVoting System Look Like?
When we last left the discussion in Part 3, we looked at the 5 big technical challenges to an adoptable, credible, and defensible iVoting system. For Part 4 we begin to consider what a new iVoting System solution could or would have to look like...
The Technical Challenges Facing iVoting
iVoting faces several technological challenges before it can begin to be implemented. Most election officials and experts in the field are hesitant or skeptical about implementing iVoting with current Internet and Web technology. Even when we view iVoting as simply returning a digital absentee ballot or the digital equivalent of voting by mail, as I explain in this installment of my series, there are still substantial innovations required....
The Challenges of iVoting Implementation
When we last left this discussion, I had laid out a basis for our interest in technologies just over the horizon or "ready next" and in particular the growing interest in smartphone voting. I am essentially carving up a technology backgrounder white paper for easy reading here. Today I help us dive in with a survey of the challenge areas to "Pajama Voting" (I love that phrase)...
Is Foreign State Hacking of an Election An Act of War?
A couple of days ago Benjamin Dynkin, Barry Dynkin & Daniel Garrie, published an intriguing article in the New York Law Journal, “Hacking Elections: An Act of War?” (Subscription required.) The article is well heeled; Benjamin Dynkin is a law clerk at Grauman Law Group. Barry Dynkin is of counsel at the firm, where he heads the cyber security practice. Daniel Garrie is the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Law and Cyber Warfare and a partner at Zeichner Ellman & Krause. And its worth summarizing here food for thought (inasmuch as possibly some intellectual navel-gazing ;-)
iVoting and the Challenges of Election Reform
This is the first of a multi-part series on the topic of iVoting -- its many challenges to becoming a reality. This blog post introduces author Sergio Valente, a student at American University and an Electoral Infrastructure Policy Researcher & Analyst at the OSET Institute.
Oh, Canada: Major Election Technology Research Collaboration with Elections Ontario
San-Francisco, CA — GET Summit We're announcing today, Day-2 of the Global Election Technology Summit underway in San Francisco, a unique collaboration with a Canadian partner, Elections Ontario....
Addressing the Impact of Voter Data Tampering
We are often asked to explain the impact of compromised voter data and we realized today that given some very relevant integrity engineering going on in the TrustTheVote Project its worth revisiting that for new citizens following our work, especially the growing #unhackthevote community.....
National Academies Wades Into The Future of Voting Technology Question
The esteemed National Academies of Sciences, Engineering & Medicine recently announced the formation of the “Committee on the Future of Voting: Accessible, Reliable, Verifiable Technology.” Their Study will take up topics in four areas all of which we have developed domain expertise in for 10-years. We're excited to support their efforts...
A Call for the President to Act on Electoral Integrity Preparedness
Its not common for us to wade into policy issues of our U.S. President's Administration, but given how much we've witnessed regarding foreign meddling in the 2016 election cycle, we believe its well within our mission scope to comment today on this nation's preparedness regarding our election infrastructure in upcoming elections.....
Wharton-OSET Election Technology Industry Study Released
The OSET Institute and Penn Wharton Public Policy Initiative released a new study today, over a year in development, that provides a business analysis of the structure and outlook of the voting machine industry. Wharton made a 2-minute video overview to provide a very high-level overview . . .
Thinking Through How to Upgrade Democracy: This Weekend's UnConference
The OSET Institute was pleased to help underwrite a gathering of 170+ (over 100 actually were able to be there in person) ...true thought leaders on our home turf of Palo Alto this weekend...
An Open Letter to DHS Secretary Johnson About Election Night Security
With all due respect Mr. Secretary. I've had the privilege and honor to provide confidential subject matter expertise to your Department on election technology security. And nothing I write here will compromise that duty requested of me, including its confidentiality. However, given your remarks on Tuesday while chatting with the Washington Post columnist David Ignatius in a conversation carried on CSPAN, you reiterated statements previously made by your Department regarding the security of the election. I respectfully assert that these statements now need to be clarified...
The Russians Are Coming. Oh Snap, They’re Already Here
Many of us witnessed the breaking story over the weekend about the decision by both the President and the Congress (in a rare bipartisan fashion) to finally take the matter seriously and perform the imperative deep forensic investigation required to get to the bottom of how and to what extent our most vital aspect of the administration of our democracy was compromised or meddled in by the Russian government or any foreign state actor. Regardless of what they learn, the critical point is the need to replace our deteriorating voting infrastructure before the next Presidential election...
Recounts Should Not be the Agenda Alone; Its About the Audit
We congratulate the effort to seek recounts, but not because we believe the recounts are in of themselves what is deserved or to reverse an election outcome. That's done, and the outcome is likely correct. No, we congratulate the effort only because the real issue that needs to be addressed is an audit of the election....
With the Election Past; The Clock is Running
With the election behind us, regardless of how you view the results, one irrefutable fact remains... the 2016 general election is absolutely the last election the existing voting infrastructure of this nation can possibly support. Another fact is that the machinery of America's elections is on its last legs (literally)...
Announcing: Our Story in a New 2-Minute Video
Today we’re launching our story, in a 2-minute video developed by a team led by Meegan Gregg, our Director of Citizen Outreach. It involved an enormously generous grant from XPLANE .....
Announcing the Pennsylvania Canvasser App
The TrustTheVote Project is proud to announce the launch of the Pennsylvania Voter Registration App developed in partnership with Rock the Vote, Pennsylvania Voice, and the office of the Pennsylvania Secretary of State. This first in the nation mobile App is the culmination of over a year of work and marks a significant improvement in the voting experience for the citizens of Pennsylvania....
Response Letter to POLITICO Article on Critical Election Infrastructure
Below is a letter sent to Tim Starks and Cory Bennett of POLITICO, who cover cyber-security issues. There seems to be some fundamental misunderstandings of the challenges local election officials (LEOs) face, the process by which the equipment is qualified for deployment (albeit decrepit archaic technology by today's standards), what the vulnerabilities are (and are not), and why a designation of "critical infrastructure" is an important consideration. We attempt to address some of those points in this response to Tim's otherwise really good coverage....
Finally, Gov Starts Talking About Critical Democracy Infrastructure
This week the Government started earnest discussions about election infrastructure as possibly rising to the level of critical infrastructure. Like us, we think they're sensing that this coming general election is ripe for disruption, both from foreign operator but potentially even domestic actors. We think this is a great idea, but not without the required action to make it really happen. Designations are start, but there is a bunch of work to be done...