Is the security in e-voting up to the standards business executives would demand in their business applications? No way. Definitely not. Five years ago, yes, but in the current climate, no. These guys are betting their critical business processes on software. They need to consider who might do harm to that system. This level of rigor isn't applied to e-voting systems.

What do you think should be done? There should be much more severe security testing requirements. The key, from my perspective, is you need to raise awareness that these vulnerabilities do exist and can be exploited and you need a way of measuring security.

Diebold Responds

Diebold has publicly denounced the Leon County tests as being invalid. In fact, the vendor contended that Leon County Elections Supervisor Ion Sancho's decision to sponsor the hacking attempts were potential violations of licensing agreements and intellectual property rights. In a letter to Sancho on June 8, Diebold said Sancho had committed a 'very foolish and irresponsible act.' In that same letter, Diebold said the May hack was akin to 'leaving your car unlocked, with the windows down and keys left in the ignition and then acting surprised when your car is stolen or the interior vandalized.'

Diebold spokesman David Bear responded to some of Thompson's claims about Diebold gear. The design of the equipment used in the Leon County demonstration dates back to the early 1990s, Bear said. Diebold's current touch-screen voting machines have far more sophisticated security that would prevent this type of attack.