myth or real threat?
In anticipation of how everyone is following the elections in the United States, I cannot ignore this topic. Everything said is my personal opinion. In principle, I am not interested in political affairs, the article was written only from the point of view of cybersecurity. And it’s about voting machines in the USA and Europe.
What if we are all already being deceived?
So, elections. Everyone says that this is the basis of democracy and everyone’s voice is important. But what if we said that in reality this whole process can be vulnerable, and your voice is not as secure as you think? Yes, this is the 21st century, voting machines are everywhere, and we are all used to believing that technology only helps. But here's the problem – these technologies can be hacked. Is it really possible that someone, by pressing a button, really controls the elections? Let's figure it out.
How did we get to this life?
Once upon a time, elections looked simple: take a ballot, sign it, throw it in the ballot box, and wait for the results. Everything is like in the history books. But humanity decided to “improve” the system and away we go! Automated voting machines appeared, at first without any special bells and whistles, but gradually they began to turn into complex devices – from touch screens to full Internet connections.
And so we end up with machines that seem to do everything perfectly, but in fact, each of them is an open door for a skilled hacker. Various types – from “home” autonomous systems to bulky servers for online voting – all of this has long been a potential gateway for hacking.
What could go wrong?
Now comes the fun part. Imagine you are voting for one candidate, but for some reason the machine is counting for another. And this is not due to an “accidental error”. Let's talk about what vulnerabilities are hidden in these “miracle devices”.
Physical access: just walk up and break everything. In fact, anyone can hack a car (I exaggerated this, of course, but still) who approaches it. It is enough to connect a flash drive with the desired program, and here is a “magic” way to replace all the voices. In some cases, the security of these cars is comparable to a bicycle lock – it seems to be there, but you can open it.
Software vulnerabilities: not so complicated. Outdated systems are a haven for hackers. Imagine, many machines still run OSs that are already twenty years old. Almost Windows XP – do you think it’s easy to put something in there?
Internet connection: another problem. Honestly, why should voting systems be on the Internet? But no, some of them, especially for online voting, do not work at all without it. And here cybersecurity is clearly lame – we begin to connect servers that can be hacked without leaving home.
Hacked – so what?
Now – the juiciest stories. There have been cases where cybersecurity experts hacked voting machines of all kinds within just a few hours. Here are some examples:
DEF CON Voting Village: Every year at the hacker conference DEF CON in Las Vegas, experts are “released” on real voting machines. So what do you think? Almost every year, cars get hacked. Attacks can be very different – from hacking the administration system to completely replacing data.
2016 US Elections: Rumor has it that there have been tampering attempts on some sites and servers, prompting public questions about cybersecurity. There is little official evidence, but the very fact that this was discussed at the level of national elections speaks volumes.
Political aspect: “well, is everyone allowed?”
Oddly enough, politicians in the states have long tried to hush up the problem. No one wants to admit that the system that the whole country trusts may not be reliable. After all, this is a blow to your reputation! Like, imagine that one country declares to another: “Your elections are dishonest, your machines are hacked.” This immediately causes dissatisfaction.
And here a dilemma arises: either invest in the development of protection, which requires a lot of money, or sit quietly and pretend that everything is in order.
How to fix everything? Or not at all?
If you have a suspicion that not everything is so smooth, you are right. In reality, there is no perfect protection here, but some things can be improved.
Thorough Audit. Let independent experts periodically check the machines and update the software. After all, if you don’t check, then sooner or later it will come out sideways.
Disable the Internet and leave offline systems. Yes, it's inconvenient, but it's safe. Less network connection means less risk of hacking.
Employee training. Everyone has heard about the “human factor”. It is necessary that those who are responsible for election security are sufficiently trained and do not make “childish” mistakes.
Myth or threat?
This is not a myth. This is a real problem that hundreds of experts have already dealt with and will continue to deal with. Until we have a 100% secure system (and this may never happen =)), this threat will always exist.
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