» Special Feature

Smartmatic’s Response To Committee Report On Poll Automation

admin — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 03:48:33 +0000

"Machines don’t cheat, it’s people who cheat and people can use the machine to cheat.’

I like this quote from Comelec Executive Director Jose Tolentino. It's simple and clear and it basically puts into proper perspective this whole issue about alleged electoral fraud in the elections last May.

Indeed, the evidence presented to the House Committee on Suffrage and Electoral Reforms only show that whatever "systematic cheating" there was can not really be attributed to Smartmatic. As a provider, Smartmatic merely supplied the machines and the system. As a company looking to do more business in the Philippines and in other Asian countries, I don't think Smartmatic would do anything stupid or nefarious that would jeopardize its goal. It simply is not in its best interest to participate in any "evil" conspiracy.

On the other hand, it can be argued that perhaps Smartmatic didn't provide the best system or didn't do enough to ensure that the system would be fool-proof. Fair enough. But consider the fact of life that nothing is ever perfect. Smartmatic's automated system may not be perfect but it was certainly better than the manual system.

As to the claim of Makati Representative Tedoro Locsin Jr., who also chairs the House Committee on Suffrage and Electoral Reform, that "cheating done under the automated system could be untraceable, unlike in manual elections where money and hard work could uncover a fake ballot." Well, that may not exactly be true. Money and hard work could uncover any wrongdoing whatever the system may be. Come to think of it money and hard work could also lead to a lot of nitpicking.

Anyway, here's an interview with Smartmatic spokesperson Gene Gregorio on this issue.

Help Ensure H.O.P.E; Be Prepared To Vote

admin — Sun, 09 May 2010 04:15:56 +0000

Ok so tomorrow is D-Day. I hope you're all ready for our first ever automated elections. Let's all do our part to ensure that it will proceed without any hitches. Well okay there will be hitches; that's unavoidable. Let's at least help minimize the problems.

As voters we can help by going to the precincts prepared. It would be good to hav a prepared list of your chosen candidates. The goal is to cast our votes as fast as possible so we don't cause any delays for the other voters.

Please make sure to be alert also for anything, but don't be too alert to the point of paranoia. Let's believe in the system. Forget all those claims that there will be massive cheating and that attempts at manipulating the results will be done through the PCOS machines. Nothing could be further from the truth. There's just too many security features for anyone to be able to tinker with the system and not get caught easily.

Attempts to cheat will not occur online or through the machines. They can however be done offline or outside of the automated system itself. Some unscrupulous individuals or groups may try to prevent some voters from exercising their rights. Word on the street is vote buying no longer works the same way as many years ago. Nowadays the strategy is to simply prevent voters of the opposing candidate from appearing at the polling precincts. This may involve pay-offs and in some cases intimidation.

If you happen to notice anything unusual just kep calm and approach the nearest election officer or law enforcer and report to them what you saw. Let the authorities do their job.

Now it can't be stressed enough that all efforts have been taken to educate everyone about the automated system and he procedures involved. If ever you find yourself clueless as to how you should fill out the ballot etcetera etcetera etcetera don't even dare lay the blame on Comelec or Smartmatic-TIM. You have only yourself t blame.

Here are a few resources for you to review:

System Demo

Ballot Template
System Demo

List of Candidates

Rebuttal To Doomsday Scenario

admin — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 04:11:01 +0000

The hopelessly paranoid are at it again spinning tales of conspiracies. Their latest (though not necessarily new) speculative scenario of doom is about the alleged plot to keep President Gloria Arroyo in power. Here's an excerpt from abante-tonite.com report:

Lumutang na umano ang tatlong senyales para magkaroon ng failure of election sa Mayo 10 at manatili sa kapangyarihan si Pangulong Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Ayon kay Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Neri Colmenares, ito ay ang pagtalaga ni Arroyo kay Lt. Gen. Delfin Bangit, kilalang loyalista nito bilang bagong chief of staff ng Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), ang malawakang brownouts at ang hindi pa natatapos na pag-imprenta ng mga balota.

You just got to love these doomsayers. For them, every little thing has to have some sort of ominous subtext and invisible connection. I must admit I find their rumor mongering quite entertaining much like those crazy Japanese game shows.

Funny, isn't it? Also, totally pointless, yes? Well, that's also how I view these agents of doom. Funny and totally pointless.

I was actually thinking of writing a serious rebuttal to Congressman Neri Colmenares' theory, but I realized that would be an exercise in futlity. These people know no reason and only believe what their malicious minds can conceive. So, aside from just saying that the Comelec has already managed to get the printing of ballots back on schedule and that there is no clear evidence of any conspiracy at this time, I'll just post the lyrics of that brilliant voters education music video from the Kapuso network. Enjoy!

Bilog na Hugis Itlog
(Sexbomb Dancers)

May bilog, may bilog na hugis itlog
Mare, mare,
May ikukuwento ako sa ‘yo, puwede?
Oo naman mare! Puwede!
Simula na po ang automation
Sa darating na twenty ten elections

Sa automation bibilis
bibilis ang bilangan
Kaya lalong dapat nating bantayan

Nasa balota na, mga pangalan
ng kandidatong pagpipilian
Alamin na po natin ang automation
Paano nga ba’ng gagawin?
Ano bagong instruction?

May bilog, may bilog na hugis itlog
May bilog, may bilog na hugis itlog
Ang kailangan sa bilog
ay simpleng-simple lang
Itiman, i-shade loob ng bilog

Hanapin ang bilog sa tapat ng pangalan
ng kandidatong napupusuan
Ang bilog, ang bilog
sa tapat ng pangalan
‘Yan ang dapat nating markahan
Gets mo ba?
Gets ko na!
Gets na gets na talaga!

Computer ang magbabasa
ng ating mga balota
Kung mali ang pagmarka
Baka boto mo’y mabasura
Sayaaaang!

Balota mo’y alagaan
Boto’y makapangyarihan
Huwag gusutin o dungisan
Upang tiyak na mabilang
Ang boto mo, boto mo
Makapangyarihan
Pumili tayo ng tuwid
ng may paninindigan
Tunay na lider na magsisilbi sa bayan
Yan ang kailangan
Kailangan ng bayan

Isang Presidente
Bise Presidente
Mga Senador puwede hanggang dose
Isang Congressman
At isang Party List lang

Huwag na, huwag nang dagdagan
Isang Mayor
May Vice Mayor
At kung ilang Konsehal ang kailangan
Isang Gobernador
At kanyang Bise
At kung ilang Bokal puwede!

Hanapin ang bilog
Sa tapat ng pangalan
ng kandidatong napupusuan
Ang bilog, ang bilog
Sa tapat ng pangalan
‘Yan ang dapat nating markahan

May bilog, may bilog na hugis itlog
May bilog, may bilog na hugis itlog
Ang kailangan sa bilog
ay simpleng-simple lang
Itiman, i-shade loob ng bilog
Ang loob ng bilog na hugis itlog
Huwag bibilugan
loob ang dapat itiman
Ang loob ng bilog na hugis itlog
Aw!!!

Things You Ought To Know About Election 2010

admin — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 01:47:50 +0000

(This guest post comes from Earl Rosero, a volunteer of the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting. Earl is involved in preparations for the upcoming election.)

Voters who want to be well-informed of how the May 10, 2010 elections will be conducted should visit these two websites: www.comelec.gov.ph and www.bagongbontante.ph I also recommend that you visit this law website: http://www.chanrobles.com/electionlawsofthephilippines.htm

Now, here is my presentation on Poll Automation 2010 based on information culled from various publicly-available official documents and sources like those posted on the Comelec website.

Getting the Voter to Vote

First things first. The voter must get to the precinct to vote. This part of the election process poll automation is powerless to address. Intimidation, terrorism, laziness and apathy can keep voters from voting. Desperate candidates who are fairly certain of losing in a locality will use intimidation and terrorism to force voters to stay in their homes on election day. An example of such evil acts would be the burning of schools on or before election day. In places where they are popular, the desperate candidates will even transport their voters to the voting centers and bring them home. The lazy and those who don't really care about the future of our country would rather stay at home to do what they usually do on any normal day of their senseless lives.

When you go to the school or other venue that serves as a voting center, look first for your name is the list of voters and then look for the room of your precinct.. Ask the voters' assistance desks for help. The room you went to before may not be the same room you will vote at this time around.

Go to the voting center early. Do not wait for the end of voting hours (6:00pm). The sooner the voting gets done, the sooner the Board of Election Inspectors (BEI) can start telling the voting machine to count the votes and print out the results. The results will be read out loud when they are first printed. The accredited watchers will be given copies of the election results. The results paper will look like an official receipt from a cash register and will be a long roll of paper because there are many positions at stake in these elections on May 10, 2010.

The Ballot

The Comelec will print 50 million ballots. There has never been an election in Philippine history with 100 percent voter turnout or even close to it. There will be more than enough ballots on election day.

The ballot is like one big lotto card. Days before election day, list down in alphabetical order (according to surname) the names of your candidates. The names of the candidates are printed in alphabetical order on the ballot. Bring that list with you when you vote.

When the BEI gives you the ballot, make sure that none of the ovals are filled up. You should have a blank ballot. If your ballot already has shadings and markings on it, do not accept that ballot and let the watchers know that you were given a pre-filled up ballot.

Just shade the blank ovals to the left of the candidates' names. Do not use your digital camera or cellphone with camera while you are voting. You are not allowed to take pictures of the ballot you are filling up or have filled up. The presumption is that you will show that picture to someone else after you leave the precinct and that someone else could be the candidate's representative who will have a nice 'token' for your perverse 'loyalty'.

Do not make any mistakes when shading the ballot. You will not be given another ballot in case you make any mistakes in shading the ovals. The Comelec's General Instructions to the BEIs says "not more than one ballot shall be issued at one time." Follow the instructions printed on the ballot. The candidates for the national posts are all on one side while the candidates for the local elections are on the reverse side. The columns are color-coded. For the party-list elections, the secrecy folder placed at the table will have a list of the candidate party-list groups and their corresponding numbers or acronym letters printed on the ballot.

After you choose your candidates, you will insert your ballot into the voting machine. The machine will scan both sides of the paper at the same time, as you feed the ballot into the machine. Do not force the ballot into the machine. Just let the machine take in the ballot. If the paper jams, you can re-insert it. Ask for the help of the BEI. If the BEI need technical help, the Comelec will have technical staff on stand-by at the voting centers.

If you are free, return to the precinct at 6pm, so you can see the voting results from your precinct. The printout of the PCOS machine, the voting results will be posted outside the precinct for everyone to see and even take pictures of.

The Voting Machine

The voting machine looks very much like a fax machine used in today's modern offices. The 'brains' of that machine are in its memory card. The BEI will have keys they will use to turn on the machine. The BEI chairman and members will also have password/codes to given them access to the machine. Operating the voting machine will be like operating an ATM unit. The anxiety some people have about the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machine are unnecessary, a waste of energy and time, and confuse the public.

A much-awaited event is the release of the source code. The Poll Automation law (RA 9369) defines source code as "

human readable instructions that define what the computer equipment will do". The source code will instruct the PCOS machines to do what they are supposed to do: obey the instructions of the BEI; read/scan the ballots; record the results; save the scanned images of the ballots and the results; and transmit the results to the canvassers. Most likely, the source code will not be given or sent to anyone who wants a copy of it. The less tiresome way would be to upload it to the poll automation website and make it available for downloading, so anyone who wants a copy of it can just download it. Comelec has said the source code will be available by early February 2010.

I expect the candidates, political parties, cause-oriented groups, and software experts to feast on this source code. Let them study it to their hearts' content and then try to find way to break it and hack the poll automation system.

When the code is loaded into the PCOS memory card, it will not run on its own or automatically. Commands entered through the lcd keypad of the PCOS machine will run step by step commands.

Now, how can something like this be sabotaged or tampered with? Let's assume I am hired by a candidate, political party, or some other person whose future may be radically affected by the election results. I have several options. I would of course download the source code and then study it. I would try to find ways to disable or render useless as many PCOS machines as I can. I would try to intercept and steal many PCOS memory cards. I might replace PCOS memory cards with bogus ones. The bogus memory cards could have sets of instructions that will instruct the PCOS machines to tabulate the results in ways that will favor the people who hired me.

To do all these, I need to have very powerful computer with lots and lots of processing speed and capacity and a top-notch team of hackers who will try to crack the 128-bit encryption and the digital signatures programmed into the memory cards. The equipment and the team will likely have to be imported. The operation would be like a high-tech robbery of a bank. This effort would cost millions of dollars. Can I or anyone break through or go around the security measures? Remotely unlikely, but not impossible.

It is very likely that the encryption software and digital signatures are not part of the source code. Encryption codes and digital signatures are not source codes and should therefore not be released to the public. The Comelec is required to make public the source code, but not the security measures. The security measures would likely be the 'container and packaging' of the source code.

Instead of resorting to expensive, high-tech means of cheating, the cheaper way to sabotage the elections would be through intimidation, terrorism and the bombing of facilities like power plants, power transmission lines, and cell sites of mobile communications. The Comelec, media and citizens' groups should have plans to thwart these tactics.

The Transmission of Results from the Precinct

The results will be transmitted electronically to at least six receiving points: the Comelec headquarters node; the nodes for the provincial, city, and town boards of canvassers; the node for the political parties, media and PPCRV; and the back-up node of Smartmatic. This means, there will be six identical electronic copies of the results sent out from the precinct. The results in each voting machine will be stored in the machine's memory card. That memory card will have security features, including encryption and digital signatures. It will also have distinct markings to distinguish it from counterfeit ones. Those memory cards and the used, accepted ballots will be put in storage and will be used again in case of election results protests or in case there are serious problems with the electronic trans.

The results sent out from the precincts will be posted on the poll automation website. If I were the one to design the system, the computer network for the poll automation website where the results will be posted will not have a direct cable link or wireless link to any of the receiving nodes. The website computer server will be like a stand-alone computer, so hackers cannot attack it remotely. Anyone who wants to try to attack the website will have to be physically present at the server to do the hacking in person. Hence, the importance of tight security at the places where these computer systems will be located.

As has been explained by Comelec officials and Smartmatic people, the transmission time from the precinct to the Comelec node will be about two to three minutes. Given the security features used and that small window of opportunity of only two to three minutes, It will not be easy for hackers to go in to steal data, copy data, or replace the data being transmitted. The software being used to manage the transmission of data has also features that will let the system know that unauthorized intrusion is taking place. The level of security that will be used is similar in some ways to those that banks use to protect their electronic banking networks and ATM units.

The Canvassing of Votes at the Town/City/Province/National

This is where a lot of the cheating usually takes place in past elections. The top guns of candidates are fielded at the canvassing centers. Among them are lawyers and you can bet that some of them have legal tricks up their filthy sleeves.

On the night of election day, the Comelec, the political parties, the media and the PPCRV will all know who won the elections. They all have identical electronic copies of the precinct results. But at this point, those are still unofficial results because the official results will come after the canvassers have done their jobs. The country will wait for the canvassers to officially announce the winners. HOW LONG WILL WE WAIT FOR THE OFFICIAL PROCLAMATION?

The canvassers at the city/town and provincial levels will convene at 6:00pm on election day. They will use the electronically-transmitted results from the precincts. Poll watchers should have extra sharp senses during the canvassing in case any dirty tricks are used. The local canvassers can also use the data contained in the memory cards of PCOS machines, but, I suppose, this second option will be resorted to when the first option cannot be used for some sound reason.

The canvassers will electronically-transmit their certificates of canvass to the Comelec headquarters and to the Senate President. The National Board of Canvassers for the Presidential and Vice Presidential Elections will be Congress convened in joint session. The National Board of Canvassers for the Senatorial and Party-List Electons will be the Comelec en banc. These two National Boards will canvass every election return from every province, city and municipality. Their basis for the canvassing will be the eelctronically-trasmitted certificates of canvass from the local levels. RA 9369 gives Congress and the Comelec up to 30 days after election day to open the certificates of canvass and collate all the results.

Thirty days is the maximum wait but CONGRESS AND COMELEC SHOULD CONVENE AS NATIONAL BOARDS OF CANVASSERS THE DAY AFTER ELECTION DAY AND START CANVASSING THE RESULTS THAT SAME DAY.

Let us hope and pray that evil tactics will not be used to delay or stop the canvassing and proclamation of the official results.

SEO Experiment: Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Richard Gordon

admin — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 03:59:28 +0000

The number of people reading, writing or talking about the automated election in May is rising but is still far from ideal. More people should already be discussing poll automation by this time. This is important because any and all possible issues regarding this should be ironed out before -- not during and after -- election day.

I'm not really surprised though by the apparent lack of interest. Filipinos aren't exactly known for anticipation. We're more comfortable just reacting and raising a howl over events that could have been prevented in the first place. Flashfloods and improper waste disposal come to mind.

Using the Keyword Tool of Google Adwords, I ran a quick check of searches for the keywords "poll automation" and "automated election" from the Philippines. Here are the results:

For "automated election":

For "poll automation":

Encouraging, isn't it?

Perhaps a little SEO experiment might help. Let's see if using popular keywords would get more people to come here and read up on poll automation. Here goes.

Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar, Gilbert Teodoro

Talk about keyword density. For maximum effect let's put up a picture of an abnormally popular personality.

Stupid measures for stupid times.

SexBomb Dancers On Poll Automation

admin — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:14:57 +0000

I really didn't want to do this. In fact I tried my best to resist the urge. But then I realized what the heck. If it can help teach more people about poll automation then I might as well post it here.

So here it is for your viewing pleasure. Voters' education on the 2010 automated election system courtesy of the SexBomb Dancers.

Ano laban o bawi?

Automated Elections Procedure On Video

botomoto — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 03:06:16 +0000

The Commission on Elections has started providing information on how easy it is to vote using the new automated system.

Watch these video:

Now to reiterate.

Voting With The Modern Ballot Is Easy
Do Not Over-Vote

Thre you have it. Just remember the most important thing -- whether under a manual or automated system -- is your vote so use it wisely.

PCOS (Precinct Count Optical Scan) Machines – Unboxed

smashzilla — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 03:54:59 +0000

We took on the invitation of Smartmatic to see how the voting machines worked. But I went one step further. Being a self-professed geek, I asked the Smartmatic demo people if I could do an "unboxing" article in the spirit of Gizmodo and other gadget publications out there.

After some friendly persuasion and assurances that I have never wrecked any brand new gadgets (nothing over thousand pesos anyway), they decided to let me take some pictures provided they did all the handling of the machine.

Simply put, the PCOS is a scanner with an advanced OCR for scanning in, recording and collating the ballots as they're slipped into the machine.

At first glance, as a gadget freak, seeing the voting machine itself was disappointing. No bells and whistles. No fancy keyboards or buttons. It's just a BOX! In this case, minimalism is good.

Am looking forward to a bigger demonstration to see if this machine can really change Philippine elections.

Mock elections anyone?