VeriSign tapped to secure Internet voting

R. A. Hettinga rah at shipwright.com
Wed Oct 1 17:33:17 EDT 2003


<http://msnbc-cnet.com.com/2102-1029_3-5083772.html?tag=3Dni_print>



VeriSign tapped to secure Internet voting=20
By Robert Lemos=20
Staff Writer, CNET News.com=20
http://news.com.com/2100-1029-5083772.html=20

VeriSign announced Monday that it will provide key components of a system d=
esigned to let Americans abroad cast absentee votes over the Internet.=20

The contract was granted by consulting firm Accenture, which is working wit=
h the U.S. Department of Defense on a voting system known as the Secure Ele=
ctronic Registration and Voting Experiment . When completed, the system wil=
l allow absentee military personnel and overseas Americans from eight parti=
cipating states to cast their votes in the 2004 general election.=20

"The solution we are building will enable absentee voters to exercise their=
 right to vote," said George Schu, a vice president at VeriSign. "The sanct=
ity of the vote can't be compromised nor can the integrity of the system be=
 compromised--it's security at all levels."=20


VeriSign has been selected to host the servers and information needed to au=
thenticate voters and ensure that they cast only one vote.  Internet and el=
ectronic voting systems are notoriously hard to secure. In July, researcher=
s at Johns Hopkins University raised extensive security issues with a leadi=
ng electronic voting system manufactured by Diebold Election Systems.=20

Schu stressed that several layers of security will prevent hackers from acc=
essing the system. VeriSign will house the security servers in its own host=
ing centers. The company will ask military personnel to use their Common Ac=
cess Cards--the latest form of ID for the military--to access the system an=
d cast a vote. Civilians will use digital signatures.=20

Overseas U.S. citizens from Arkansas, Florida, Hawaii, Minnesota, North Car=
olina, South Carolina, Utah and Washington will be able to use the system t=
o cast votes.=20

Related News=20
Voting machine fails inspection=9A=9A July 24, 2003=20
http://news.com.com/2100-1009-5054088.html=20

Tech glitches don't mar Florida vote=9A=9A November 6, 2002=20
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-964609.html=20

Tech makes its mark at the ballot box=9A=9A November 6, 2002=20
http://news.com.com/2009-1023-964723.html=20

U.K. puts online voting to the test=9A=9A April 26, 2002=20
http://news.com.com/2110-1023-893093.html=20

Toward digital democracy=9A=9A November 6, 2001=20
http://news.com.com/2009-1023-275348.html=20

Get this story's "Big Picture"=20
http://news.com.com/2104-1029-5083772.html=20


--=20
-----------------
R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah at ibuc.com>
The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/>
44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA
"... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity,
[predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to
experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'

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