Re: [Full-Disclosure] University Researchers Challenge Bush Win In Florida

["Jason Coombs" <jasonc@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

As for source code or other security vulnerabilities in closed- or open-soure 
vote tabulators, there is little point in rigging such schemes, and less point 
in exploiting them. Good old fashion statistical abberations exploited for the 
benefit of the party that finds them first will win every time.

In principle, all voters have roughly the same risk of their vote not being 
counted under any electoral system. This is called 'equitable risk'.

If, through testing of electronic voting machines, statistical anomalies can be 
detected that favor the candidate that is entered into the database third (or 
whatever, take your pick, and it would be different for different voting 
machines and maybe in different regions, say, because Florida is full of 
elderly) then you can 'rig' an election in your favor simply by having a 
non-random selection for the order in which the candidates get listed, and a 
failure to properly distribute that randomness across precincts.

If anything, that is what I believe is most likely to have happened in 2004. 
Bush elected through the (fair ?) exploitation of statistical anomalies tied to 
misbehaving or ill-conceived electronic voting equipment. Teamed with the fact 
that partisan, interested voters are in charge of the process this is very 
plausible...

Sincerely,

Jason Coombs
jasonc@xxxxxxxxxxx

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