Free Software Foundation Urges Open Source Voting Systems for Security
bad guys always know how to get in. They’re always going to spend the time, they’re always going to figure it out. All you’re doing by keeping your design secret is you’re preventing all the good guys from helping you make it better.
As efforts to exert control over the upcoming US midterm elections grow, Mississippi and New Hampshire feature free software voting machines from VotingWorks. The Free Software Foundation (FSF) has emphasized that digital systems add vulnerabilities to the voting process, which encompasses voter registration, casting a vote, and tallying results.
Implementation in Mississippi and New Hampshire
The VotingWorks machines used in Mississippi and New Hampshire have been certified under the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG 2.0) guidelines. These specific machines are not connected to the internet and function to assist in the recording and counting of paper ballots. According to the FSF, free software brings cost reductions, individualized control, and opportunities for increased security and transparency, which could help boost voter trust and hold unsubstantiated allegations of election fraud at bay.
The Case for Public Source Code
While commercial vendors protect their trade secrets, advocates argue that public source code allows for greater scrutiny and security. Principle 9, Auditable, of the VVSG 2.0 calls for voting systems to be auditable, transparent, and voter-verifiable. The FSF contends that any electronic aspect affecting elections should be subject to public scrutiny so that source code can be tested freely.
Addressing arguments that publication of source code makes tampering easier through security-through-obscurity reasoning, VotingWorks’ Ben Adida argues that free software instead encourages developers to design systems that remain secure even when the source code is public.
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