Diebold has settled a lawsuit for $2.6mm with the state of CA and the county of Alameda for fraudulent claims about the security of its electronic voting machines.
The settlement is the fruit of a suit filed in September by California Attorney General Bill Lockyer, who argued that Diebold was not truthful about the security and reliability of its electronic voting machines.
(more & link below the fold)
This is not news to any of us on dKos or to any who have been concerned about the security flaws and refusal of Diebold, ES&S etc. to allow examination of the source code. What is news and should provide ammunition in the recount battles in OH and FL, as well as in subsequent election reform efforts is that Diebold is basically admitting there are flaws in the security and reliability of their machines. How can we as citizens allow the fundamental instrument of our democracy, our vote, to be left to chance and private companies?
Lockyer, who earlier dropped a criminal probe into Diebold, claimed that Diebold provided Alameda County with software that was not certified by the government. Researchers earlier determined the machines contained dangerous flaws.
Researchers said the voting system could easily allow someone to cast multiple votes in the same election. Last April, California set stringent standards for electronic voting by ordering new security measures for e-voting machines.
Internet News
as background to the lawsuit from InternetNews.com:
Researchers Call Electronic Voting System Flawed
The electronic voting system believed to be developed by Diebold has serious weaknesses that could lead to election fraud, according to computer researchers at The Johns Hopkins University and Rice University. The researchers claim the system could "easily" allow someone to cast multiple votes in the same election.
The researchers reached their findings after analyzing computer code believed to be for Ohio-based Diebold Election Systems' electronic voting equipment. The code, which included modifications made through 2002, was posted anonymously to a public Web site earlier this year.
....
But the researchers said they uncovered vulnerabilities in the system that could be exploited by an individual or group intent on tampering with election results. In particular, they pointed to the use of a "smart card," containing a tiny computer chip, that each eligible voter receives.
The card, inserted into the electronic voting machine, is designed to ensure that each person casts only one ballot. The researchers believe a voter could hide a specially programmed counterfeit card in a pocket, withdraw it inside the booth and use it to cast multiple votes for a single candidate.
I know there has been a lot of back and forth on this site recently regarding the veracity of election fraud/ irregularities claims, but this seems to confirm that there is at least a case for an examination of the machines and the code in OH, FL, etc due to the swings in the exit polls, the additional votes documented in Guyahoga County, etc. and the admission that there are flaws inherent in the security of the machines as a result of this settlement.
But, I'd like to know your opinions... what do you think Kossacks... important or nothing special?