Many vulnerabilities: On using blockchains in electronic voting

ECI is commencing trials of a “remote voting project”. The robustness of blockchains in electronic voting is, as yet, suspect.

Context

• ECI is commencing trials of a “remote voting project”. The robustness of blockchains in electronic voting is, as yet, suspect.

Remote Voting Project via blockchain technology

• It is being developed by IIT-Madras.
• It uses the blockchain method for “two-way remote voting” at designated centres.
• Remote voting, as an option, has gained some priority during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The blockchain method implements an online public bulletin board that allows for a linear ordering of data to which a user can only further append data.
• The board itself is public and available for anyone to read and verify.
• In the case of a blockchain-based voting system, the voting authority will have to authenticate this bulletin board in which users sign in using cryptographic signatures to register their votes in a ledger.

Concerns related to the project

• While this system uses cryptographic features and promises data security and verifiability. However, it will depend upon a network and devices could introduce vulnerabilities that are present in any Internet-based system.
• Blockchains also introduce issues related to complexity and their management.

Other distance system

• Mail-in ballot system
• In the U.S. the mail-in ballot system was used in the recent presidential election.
• The registered voters received ballots and returned it via post or dropped it off at secure “drop boxes” or voting centers.
• This was entirely paper based.