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NIST Clarifies Import of Voting Machine Study

"Lack of an independent audit capability in DRE voting systems is one of the main reasons behind continued questions about voting system security and diminished public confidence in elections"

A discussion draft by the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) on voting machines states: "Lack of an independent audit capability in DRE voting systems is one of the main reasons behind continued questions about voting system security and diminished public confidence in elections."

While some publications such as the Washington Post took the draft report as an outright condemnation of electronic voting, NIST replied that the draft was for discussion purposes and would be analyzed at a meeting that concluded earlier today.

"Recent news accounts discussing the vulnerabilities of electronic voting systems contained in the report titled Requiring Software Independence in VVSG 2007: STS Recommendations for the TGDC said NIST on its Voting Technology page, "have raised the question of whether the report's recommendations represent the official position of NIST. This draft report was prepared by staff at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) at the request of the Technical Guidelines Development Committee (TGDC) to serve as a point of discussion at its Dec. 4-5, 2006, meeting. Prepared in conjunction with the Security and Transparency Subcommittee (STS) of the TGDC, the report is a discussion draft and does not represent a consensus view or recommendation from either NIST or the TGDC."
Wayne E. Hanson served as a writer and editor with e.Republic from 1989 to 2013, having worked for several business units including Government Technology magazine, the Center for Digital Government, Governing, and Digital Communities. Hanson was a juror from 1999 to 2004 with the Stockholm Challenge and Global Junior Challenge competitions in information technology and education.