Study Guide
1. Defining Internet voting:
Internet
voting is typically a subset of electronic voting where the voter
uses the Internet to process some phase of submitting a ballot.
Electronic voting encompasses all means of determining the people's
collective intent electronically.
2. Applications of Internet voting:
There are generally three
structures that involve internet voting,
Automating traditional systems: This
involves using web voting as a refinement of the current absentee
systems, using email as a distribution method
Web site voting: Voters
log in to a secured web site which establishes identity, accepts, and
tallies votes from registered voters.
Voting centers: Using
electronic systems, traditional poll-sites would be computerized to
accept and transmit voting data to central system.
3. Types of Internet Voting:
Poll Site:
Internet technology added to traditional voting locations.
Kiosk Voting: Internet
would be placed at non-traditional sites such as a
mall or public location for
convenience of voters.
Remote Voting: Citizens would be
able to vote from anywhere using
the
Internet.
4. Security concerns of Internet voting:
Serious security concerns
exist that currently prevent Internet voting from becoming a viable
alternative to traditional voting systems.
- Ensuring voter integrity (coercion, vote buying)
- Preserving voter privacy
- Establishing voter identity
- Securing entire data path, including links to central
database
- Preventing large scale attacks (denial of service, spoofing)
- Preventing PC-based attacks (viruses, malware) from
interfering
.
5. Future of internet voting:
In early 2004, the Department of
Defense discontinued
their SERVE electronic voting program due to irreconcilable
concerns about the ability to deploy a secure voting system.
Unfortunately, many of these concerns are inherent in the structure of
the Internet and cannot be remedied by changes in the voting program.
Future Internet voting initiatives are likely to be more focused around
automating and decentralizing voting centers.
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