ELECTION SYSTEM ENABLING COERCION-FREE REMOTE VOTING

• US 20090127335A1
• Filed: 01/14/2009
• Published: 05/21/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/05/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Seliger, Frank, Van Acker, Bernard
• Granted Patent: US 7,757,950 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/386
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 13/00 Voting apparatus

Abstract

Election system enabling coercion-free remote voting wherein a remote voter transmits his/her selected vote to the election authority through a data transmission network such as the Internet network by using a host computer having a card reader, the vote being transmitted after the voter has introduced an identifying smart card into the card reader. At least one secret code is recorded into the smart card at the location of the election authority at the moment when the latter delivers the smart card, the secret code having to be input by the voter into the host computer when the voter wants to vote during an election in order for the vote to be transmitted to the election authority and validated by the election authority.

Claims

1. An election system for enabling coercion free remote voting, comprising:

a smart card configured to record a secret code; and

a host computer having a card reader configured to receive the smart card and read the secret code from the smart card, the host computer configured by a program to transmit a selected vote over a data transmission network to an election authority responsive to the secret code;

wherein the host computer is further configured by the program to;

generate a plurality of dummies in response to the secret code;

show the plurality of dummies and the secret code to a voter in a sequentially numbered dummy list, each of the plurality of dummies and the secret code associated with a number each of the sequentially numbered dummy list;

provide a plurality of voting choices to the voter in a sequentially numbered voting choice list, each of the plurality of voting choices associated with a number each of the sequentially numbered voting choice list; and

in response to the voter voting for one of a plurality of voting choices and selecting one of the shown plurality of dummies and the secret code;

if the voter selects the secret code, enter the voter'"'"'s vote into an election system; and

if the voter selects one of the shown plurality of dummies;

select another of the plurality of voting choices as a function of a difference between the voting list number associated with the voter'"'"'s vote and the voting list number associated with the another voting choice, the difference equal to a difference between the dummy list number associated with the secret code and the dummy list number associated with the selected shown dummy, and enter the selected another voting choice as the vote'"'"'s into the election system;

or

nullify the voter'"'"'s vote within the election system.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the host computer is further configured by the program to enter a voter vote result into the election system different from a voting choice shown to the voter or to a coercer.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the host computer is further configured by the program to enable the voter to change at least one of the dummies to a specific displayed choice.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of dummies and the plurality of voting choices each comprise a quantity of at least three.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of dummies is only one dummy and the plurality of voting choices comprises a YES vote and a NO vote, wherein the host computer is further configured by the program to select an other of the YES vote and the NO vote as a true vote in response to the voter selecting the one dummy.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the host computer is further configured by the program to:

encrypt the voter'"'"'s vote and send the encrypted voting entry to an election authority; and

nullify an input by an encryption key defined for an election of the plurality of voting choices to generate an encrypted voting entry in response to the voter selecting one of the shown plurality of dummies.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the host computer is further configured by the program to generate the encryption key in response to a sequential encryption by a group of trustees, wherein each trustee encrypts a key received from a preceding trustee with his own key.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the election authority is configured to decrypt the encrypted voting entry by using the trustee sequential encryption keys in a reverse order from an order of application by the group of trustees.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the encryption by each one of said trustees is an addition modulo 10.

10. A service for enabling coercion free remote voting, comprising:

providing at least one of a host computer having a card reader adapted for transmitting a selected vote over a data transmission network to an election authority, a program for configuring the host computer, and a smart card to a voter configured for entry into the card reader;

wherein the host computer is configured by the program to;

record a one secret code provided by a voter onto the smart card entered into the card reader, and to generate a plurality of dummies in response to the secret code entry and record the plurality of dummies onto the smart card;

provide a plurality of voting choices to the voter in a sequentially numbered voting choice list, each of the plurality of voting choices associated with a number each of the sequentially numbered voting choice list;

show the plurality of dummies and the secret code to the voter in a sequentially numbered dummy list, each of the plurality of dummies and the secret code associated with a number each of the sequentially numbered dummy list; and

in response to the voter voting for one of a plurality of voting choices and selecting one of the shown plurality of dummies and the secret code;

enter the voter'"'"'s vote into an election system if the voter selects the secret code; and

if the voter selects one of the shown plurality of dummies;

select another of the plurality of voting choices as a function of a difference between the voting list number associated with the voter'"'"'s vote and the voting list number associated with the another voting choice, the difference equal to a difference between the dummy list number associated with the secret code and the dummy list number associated with the selected shown dummy, and enter the selected another voting choice as the voter'"'"'s vote into the election system;

or

nullify the voter'"'"'s vote within the election system.

11. The service of claim 10, wherein the host computer is further configured by the program to select the another of the plurality of voting choices and enter the selected another voting choice as the voter'"'"'s vote into the election system, or to nullify the voter'"'"'s vote within the election system, by entering a voter vote result into the election system different from a voting choice shown to the voter or to a coercer.

12. The service of claim 10, wherein the host computer is further configured by the program to show the plurality of dummies and the secret code to the voter by allowing the voter to change at least one of the dummies to a specific displayed choice.

13. The service of claim 10, wherein the host computer is further configured by the program to:

encrypt the voter'"'"'s vote, the selected another voting choice or a voter'"'"'s vote nullifying input by an encryption key defined for an election of the plurality of voting choices to generate an encrypted voting entry; and

send the encrypted voting entry to an election authority.

14. The service of claim 13, wherein the host computer is further configured by the program to generate the encryption key in response to a sequential encryption by a group of trustees.

15. The service of claim 14, wherein the election authority is configured to decrypt the encrypted voting entry by using a plurality of sequential trustee encryption keys in a reverse order from an order of application of the plurality of sequential trustee encryption keys by the group of trustees.

16. The service of claim 15, wherein the encryption by each one of said trustees is an addition modulo 10.

17. A method for enabling coercion free remote voting, comprising:

producing computer executable program code;

storing the code on a computer readable medium; and

providing the program code to be deployed and executed on a host computer having a card reader, the program code comprising instructions which, when executed on the host computer, causes the host computer to;

receive a smart card and read a secret code from the smart card;

generate a plurality of dummies in response to the secret code;

show the plurality of dummies and the secret code to a voter in a sequentially numbered dummy list, each of the plurality of dummies and the secret code associated with a number each of the sequentially numbered dummy list;

provide a plurality of voting choices to the voter in a sequentially numbered voting choice list, each of the plurality of voting choices associated with a number each of the sequentially numbered voting choice list; and

in response to the voter voting for one of a plurality of voting choices and selecting one of the shown plurality of dummies and the secret code;

if the voter selects the secret code, enter the voter'"'"'s vote into an election system; and

if the voter selects one of the shown plurality of dummies;

select another of the plurality of voting choices as a function of a difference between the voting list number associated with the voter'"'"'s vote and the voting list number associated with the another voting choice, the difference equal to a difference between the dummy list number associated with the secret code and the dummy list number associated with the selected shown dummy, and enter the selected another voting choice as the voter'"'"'s vote into the election system;

or

nullify the voter'"'"'s vote within the election system.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the host computer is further configured by the program to enter a voter vote result into the election system different from a voting choice shown to the voter or to a coercer.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the host computer is further configured by the program to enable the voter to change at least one of the dummies to a specific displayed choice.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the host computer is further configured by the program to generate the encryption key in response to a sequential encryption by a group of trustees, wherein each trustee encrypts a key received from a preceding trustee with his own key.