And Yet Another Sad Chapter from the Lying Liars of Diebold, America's #1 Un-American Voting System Company...
By Brad Friedman on 8/7/2007, 6:05am PT  

Blogged by Brad Friedman from Plano, TX...

Staying, as we were for a few days, just about five minutes from Diebold Election Systems, Inc., headquarters in Allen, Texas, we thought it might be nice to drive by and see the old place for ourselves late last Saturday night...

The security, apparently, wasn't much to speak of, but there were an awful lot of cars in the parking lot --- about 25 or so. Given that there were almost no cars parked in front of any of the other companies in the same industrial park, one could only speculate as to what so many folks were doing there at 10:30pm on a Saturday night.

Then again, it was the night after California Sec. of State Debra Bowen issued her extraordinary new recertification requirements [PDF] for the company's horribly designed, easily-hackable voting systems. So perhaps the geniuses at one of America's top un-American companies were devising their next steps/lies to keep themselves in business for a few more moments.

A peek into their deserted, but well-lit, warehouse brought home just how easy it would be for a company employee to take advantage of any number of the myriad sixty-second hacks found to be easily carried out by Election Insiders --- such as Diebold Employees or County Election Officials --- in Bowen's independent penetration report of Diebold's voting systems [PDF].

Note the Diebold touch-screen voting systems (in the black cases below) stacked in the warehouse right next to the loading dock, presumably ready for shipment directly to Any County, USA. Alone, and unguarded, it'd be child's play for a company employee to do anything he or she wanted with those systems, in such a way as to flip an entire election, and likely never be discovered having done so.

All of which continues to help put the lie to Diebold's statements made to the media and voting public since the release of Bowen's landmark studies and subsequently responsible actions.

Here's how Diebold spokesliar David Bear misled in the San Jose Mercury News recently:

"You have some who've made allegations that are either unfounded or rely on a scenario not reflective of a true election environment," said David Bear. "It's all based on a scenario of a so-called hacker with complete and unlimited access to a system."

No. It's not. It's based on a scenario of a so-called Election Insider --- amusingly enough, just like you Mr. Bear! --- with "complete and unlimited access" to any Diebold voting machines you wish to put your hands on. The type of of access you might enjoy by visiting your own warehouse --- as seen above in Allen, TX --- one night, before the machines ship out to whatever unsuspecting county is set to receive them.

Then there's the "complete and unlimited access" to be enjoyed by the Election Officials who receive your delivery. Then there's the "complete and unlimited access" of thousands of poll workers around the country who are given your shitty, vulnerable, easily-hacked voting machines for days and weeks prior to elections on so-called voting machine "sleepovers" when they'd have day after day of "complete and unlimited access."

But Diebold's never been one to let the truth stand in the way of making a buck and saving their asses. Here's the knowingly misleading statement [PDF] released by Diebold Election Systems, Inc. (DESI), including these choice quotes from President Dave Byrd on the morning after Bowen's announcement (and on the day of our friendly visit to Diebold):

"Secretary Bowen’s top-to-bottom review was designed to ignore security procedures and protocols that are used during every election. Her team of hackers was given unfettered access to the equipment, the source code, and all other information on security features provided by DESI to the Secretary of State's office. And she refused to include in the review the current version of DESI’s touch screen software with enhanced security features."

"Local election officials in California have put in place proper policies and procedures which compliment the security features of DESI’s voting solutions."

Good lord. Aren't there any paid journalists out there who can dispatch this kind of horseshit? Guess not. So quickly:

A) Bowen's "team of hackers" (actually, not hackers at all, but teams of some of the most respected computer scientists and security experts in the world) was not given any more access than Mr. Byrd or Mr. Bear has.

B) They did not have access to the source code. You might want to read Bowen's decertification/recertification documents [PDF] for your own voting machines where she clearly states same. Just an example or two from those docs [emphasis added for easier viewing by the Byrds and Bears and paid journalists]...

[W]ithout requiring access to Diebold source code, the Diebold Red Team members gained 'root access' to the voting system that allowed manipulation of every setting on the networking devices and on the election management server system...and...without accessing Diebold source code, were able to violate the physical security of every aspect of the TSx direct recording electronic voting machine under polling place conditions using tools found in a typical office.

C) She did not "refuse to review the current version of DESI’s touch screen software with enhanced security features." As you know, this was a "Top-to-Bottom Review" of previously certified voting systems in CA. Your "enhanced security features" were not a part of that previously certified system. But as long as you bring it up, what are those "enhanced security features" needed for? You've been telling us for years that your systems used in many previous CA elections --- without your "enhanced security features" --- were perfectly secure? It's almost as if you were...lying or something?

D) You have defrauded America quite enough. Try telling the truth for a change. It's much easier to remember. Plus, it may help keep you out of jail. Maybe.

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