J-train Design Day 2 Homework Presentation

What is the problem?

There are vulnerabilities within the voting process and no strategic placement of an external system to verify the accuracy of voting information. If done by hand there is the obvious primary issue of human error during the count. However, even done through machine, the fate of our democracy resides upon faith based trust in the system but no external accountability to assure voters the system is virtually impenetrable and mailed in ballots are properly accounted for. Put more simply, we merely assume the system is accurate.

In conjunction to technology, the voter system of the United States of America allows for disparity between popular vote and the vote of the electoral college, rendering the voters’ time and efforts towards participating in the system obsolete.

Who is the audience?

Citizens who are able to participate in their voting process.

Where do your inspirations come from?

Bush versus Gore 2000. The solution proposed was a legal court decision that simply sought to find a solution for deciding to recount but not evolve the reliability of the system. If there was no doubt for error or if said doubt was marginal there would be no serious objection for voter recount.

Trump versus Clinton 2016

Strong forensic evidence implicates Russian military intelligence in the hacking of the DNC network. In September, CNN reported that the FBI discovered attempted hacks on voter registration.

Orwellian Social Conditions

Why do you think this is worth concern?

There are already enough issues dealing with our own domestic political parties disregarding the needs of the general population. The last thing needed is an external entity manipulating the system.

 

What’s your solution or direction to the solution?

Centralized Federal Database that oversees an intentionally decentralized encryption system.

A layer of fake data around the system that is also encrypted but can fool hackers into infiltrating system and exposing themselves.

A brief but mandatory User Satisfaction survey after vote.

Eliminate the electoral college and restructure the institution as an educational resource for voters

How do you come up with this idea?

One may argue that a centralized system would be easier to hack. I would disagree because an unintentionally decentralized system presents more opportunity for security vulnerability. If there is centralized management and more intentional decentralization I would argue this allows for greater control over data and refined internal surveillance. A user satisfaction survey would document UX issues and be another source of data cross-reference for voter accuracy. The electoral college undermines the American voter and renders the process obsolete. Often the representative will choose in favor of the popular vote but this is not obligatory.