The Technological Security of American Elections: Defining, Understanding, and Implementing Secure Elections in an Insecure World
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Date
2021
Authors
Terry, Maxwell
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Oregon
Abstract
The topic of election security has dominated news cycles throughout the country in the wake of one of the most contentious elections in American history. As technology continues to develop, become more accessible, and integrate with electoral processes, each election cycle introduces new laws and ways for registered citizens to vote. We now see a diverse range of voting methods used throughout the country, such as vote-by-mail/absentee ballots, early voting, and even voting through an online portal for a select few Americans. Each separate method in each state/county utilizes different machines, security checks, and rules and regulations. With such a high degree of complexity comes questions about the technological security of American elections. In order to guarantee the fundamental democratic principle of fair and free elections, election security must be ensured such that each voter can be confident that their vote is counted as intended. Throughout the following sections I will highlight the technological risks inherent in the United States’ core election infrastructure to make recommendations on how to further improve the technological security of American elections. I will accomplish this by defining core features of the electoral system, including the different voting methods and machines used throughout the country. During this discussion I will address plausible security flaws in each method/machine’s structure. I will show how these flaws could, and have, been exploited by detailing both studies conducted on voting machines/processes as well as the foreign and domestic security risks posed by the events of the 2016 presidential election. Finally, I will make recommendations on how to improve the technological security of elections throughout the country at each step of the electoral process.
Description
56 pages
Keywords
American Elections, Cybersecurity, Foreign Interference, Election Integrity, Voting