Indian EVMs Complex machines that are built to be tamper-proof, say engineers and domain experts. In fact, he pointed to an additional feature in the M3 (model 3) EVMs — over 600 million people voted in the recent Lok Sabha polls — that reduced the security aspect.
Rajat Moona, director, IIT Gandhinagar and a member of the technical panel responsible for designing the EVM, compared the device to a simple calculator and maintained that “no EVM can do that. hacked to or tampered with”.When the debate was political in nature, he said, technically, “India EVMs can’t be hacked”.
Built on best practices
The M3 model is smarter than its predecessor and has several automated functions, including a first-level check like a computer does before booting. “EVMs, if tampered with, also have the technology to revert to factory settings and stop responding completely,” experts said. The machine is not connected to the internet nor does it have RF (radio frequency) to respond to Bluetooth. In fact, they are not plugged into an electrical outlet.
Introduced in 2019, the M3 engine will be used for several country polls and will last 15 years before being phased out and an updated version launched. “We have been exploring all the new technologies we can bring to the M4 engine,” said a member of the expert panel.
So, why the doubt?
Weeks after LS 2024 polls, tech billionaire Elon Musk called for junking EVMs, saying “the risk of being hacked by humans or AI, while small, is still very high”. Musk’s post on X – which former Union MoS IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar described as a “big sweeping generalisation” – was in response to a post on EVMs in Puerto Rico.
But Moona sees the current conversation about how to gain illegal access to EVMs as political in nature and says he wants to avoid it. Interestingly, to “remain independent”, none of the EVM technical panel members charge fees or receive honoraria for designing the voting machine architecture or technology.
According to Dinesh Sharma, professor emeritus and expert in microelectronics and solid-state electronics in the electrical engineering department of the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, “it is the only way we know that we can remain independent and total”.
‘Can’t do anything’
After every election, there are “canards” made against India’s EVMs and how they can be hacked. To clear the air and dispel the myth, Sharma had a two-hour talk in the public domain. They also plan to release an updated video on the new machine and safety features to allay the fears of the general public.
In the video, Sharma differentiates between voting machines in other parts of the world and those used in India. “Indian EVMs are different from other EVMs in the world. EVM M3 has no connection to other devices, not even the main power source. EVMs do not talk to other devices. They are designed only for voting and not general-purpose computing devices with programs loaded for voting. Electronically, our EVM cannot do anything more than other programs or software.
Sharma added that if there is a problem with the EVMs, the machines should be scrapped altogether. “Each EVM is a unique island of electronics, and this makes them very secure,” he said.
Multiple checks and constant vigil
At each step, the EVM undergoes a third-party software review while mock polls are conducted several times in the presence of candidate representatives. After that check, the machine was sealed with “rare” paper from the Nashik security printing press, the same paper used to print Indian currency notes. Every time the machine is sealed or opened, it is done in front of the election candidate or his representative.
Also, when EVMs are transported and stored before polling day, the storage room must meet strict criteria, such as having only one door. “There is also a provision to allow candidates or their representatives to camp outside 24/7 till polling day,” explained Sharma.
Not eligible due to ‘Human Error’
Following the order of the Supreme Court, the counting of the number of ballots from 20,625 randomly selected VVPATs was carried out by the electronic counting unit of the control unit for general elections.
If there is no mismatch between EVM and VVPAT counts found in such a sample, then it can be said with near certainty that the sanctity of the election process is not disturbed by the use of EVMs, said experts. So far, the ballots of 41,629 randomly selected VVPATs have been counted by the electronic count of the control unit and no case of transfer of votes meant for candidate ‘A’ to candidate ‘B’ has been detected.
Discrepancies in counts, if any, can always be traced to human error, such as not removing mock poll votes from the control unit or not removing mock poll slips from the VVPAT.
Rajat Moona, director, IIT Gandhinagar and a member of the technical panel responsible for designing the EVM, compared the device to a simple calculator and maintained that “no EVM can do that. hacked to or tampered with”.When the debate was political in nature, he said, technically, “India EVMs can’t be hacked”.
Built on best practices
The M3 model is smarter than its predecessor and has several automated functions, including a first-level check like a computer does before booting. “EVMs, if tampered with, also have the technology to revert to factory settings and stop responding completely,” experts said. The machine is not connected to the internet nor does it have RF (radio frequency) to respond to Bluetooth. In fact, they are not plugged into an electrical outlet.
Introduced in 2019, the M3 engine will be used for several country polls and will last 15 years before being phased out and an updated version launched. “We have been exploring all the new technologies we can bring to the M4 engine,” said a member of the expert panel.
So, why the doubt?
Weeks after LS 2024 polls, tech billionaire Elon Musk called for junking EVMs, saying “the risk of being hacked by humans or AI, while small, is still very high”. Musk’s post on X – which former Union MoS IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar described as a “big sweeping generalisation” – was in response to a post on EVMs in Puerto Rico.
But Moona sees the current conversation about how to gain illegal access to EVMs as political in nature and says he wants to avoid it. Interestingly, to “remain independent”, none of the EVM technical panel members charge fees or receive honoraria for designing the voting machine architecture or technology.
According to Dinesh Sharma, professor emeritus and expert in microelectronics and solid-state electronics in the electrical engineering department of the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, “it is the only way we know that we can remain independent and total”.
‘Can’t do anything’
After every election, there are “canards” made against India’s EVMs and how they can be hacked. To clear the air and dispel the myth, Sharma had a two-hour talk in the public domain. They also plan to release an updated video on the new machine and safety features to allay the fears of the general public.
In the video, Sharma differentiates between voting machines in other parts of the world and those used in India. “Indian EVMs are different from other EVMs in the world. EVM M3 has no connection to other devices, not even the main power source. EVMs do not talk to other devices. They are designed only for voting and not general-purpose computing devices with programs loaded for voting. Electronically, our EVM cannot do anything more than other programs or software.
Sharma added that if there is a problem with the EVMs, the machines should be scrapped altogether. “Each EVM is a unique island of electronics, and this makes them very secure,” he said.
Multiple checks and constant vigil
At each step, the EVM undergoes a third-party software review while mock polls are conducted several times in the presence of candidate representatives. After that check, the machine was sealed with “rare” paper from the Nashik security printing press, the same paper used to print Indian currency notes. Every time the machine is sealed or opened, it is done in front of the election candidate or his representative.
Also, when EVMs are transported and stored before polling day, the storage room must meet strict criteria, such as having only one door. “There is also a provision to allow candidates or their representatives to camp outside 24/7 till polling day,” explained Sharma.
Not eligible due to ‘Human Error’
Following the order of the Supreme Court, the counting of the number of ballots from 20,625 randomly selected VVPATs was carried out by the electronic counting unit of the control unit for general elections.
If there is no mismatch between EVM and VVPAT counts found in such a sample, then it can be said with near certainty that the sanctity of the election process is not disturbed by the use of EVMs, said experts. So far, the ballots of 41,629 randomly selected VVPATs have been counted by the electronic count of the control unit and no case of transfer of votes meant for candidate ‘A’ to candidate ‘B’ has been detected.
Discrepancies in counts, if any, can always be traced to human error, such as not removing mock poll votes from the control unit or not removing mock poll slips from the VVPAT.
