![]() ![]() Our examination of the server logs indicates that this high error rate was incongruent with patterns from previous years. The intentional errors lead to bulk adjudication of ballots with no oversight, no transparency, or audit trail. This is caused by intentional errors in the system. This was a 2020 issue not seen in previous election cycles still stored on the server. "I bought two others last month, so I'll get started on those," he said.“A staggering number of votes required adjudication. And there are plenty of other machines to tinker with, while he waits for the Michigan investigation to unfold. "The reason you pop open the machine is to learn the vulnerabilities" of each machine, in order to safeguard democracy, he added. And it is a good thing because hackers are a resource to make things safer." Hackers like him, he said, are not interested in weaponizing the weaknesses they find. Most of the time the seller is a government, a county, or it is electric recycling. "People think it's a big deal but it happens all the time. So they sold it, which is legal for them to do."įor those not in the know, Hursti said it sounds shocking to hear that voting machines can be bought and sold for little money. "The hotel called and tried to tell them they left it but no one ever called back. "They leave them behind someplace and just totally forget them," he said, adding that there was one instance in which an election device was left behind at a hotel for more than a year. In other cases, people simply fail to keep track of the machines. "They just don't have the proper training," he said. He said he's seen instances where election officials or polling place volunteers inadvertently mishandle devices or do not follow security protocols. Both offer an unnerving glimpse into the weaknesses of today's election technology. He's been featured in two documentaries - Kill Chain: The Cyber War On America's Elections and the Emmy-nominated film, Hacking Democracy - that pull the curtain back on the U.S. The 54-year-old is an expert in the field. He snapped it up then immediately put it up for sale on eBay.įor Hursti, one of the greatest threats to voting devices is not necessarily hacking, but human incompetence. ![]() That's why he bought the Dominion ImageCast X machine as soon as he saw it online, he told NPR during a phone interview.ĬNN has reported that the eBay seller, Ean Hutchison, who lives in Ohio, found the Dominion-made machine on a Michigan Goodwill website for just $7.99. ![]() Election Assistance Commission says voting machines should be meticulously inventoried and kept under lock and key "in a tamper-proof location, preferably within the election office." Hursti is a cybersecurity expert who is often contracted by state-level election officials to test vulnerabilities in voting machines. In Michigan, they were used to print voter ballots.) The U.S. (The Dominion-made apparatuses are built to function as voting machines or ballot printing devices. "We are actively working with law enforcement to investigate allegations of an illegal attempt to sell a voter assist terminal acquired in Michigan," Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, who is up for reelection in November, announced in a statement last week.Īnd, in an additional tweet, Benson noted that the voting machine was originally from Wexford County and clarified that it was not used to tabulate ballots. Harri Hursti has bought about 200 used voting machines without incident, but the one he purchased on eBay last month is now the subject of a state investigation, with Michigan officials determined to find out how the device ended up for sale online. Don't worry the guy who bought it isn't a MAGA quack or anything. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |