How can the fully automated presidential election in 2010 be cheated?

I think this set-up will lessen cheating. Automating the process with a clear plan is good and will speed the election process up. However, the question on whether the Philippines is still prepared for an automated process is still up. The reason why people are questioning the integrity of the process is primarily linked on how educated are the general mass in this type of election process. Some questions that we can answer are - 1. How can we teach the digitally and electronically-challenged? 2. Will there be a demonstration? 3. How can we say that this process will not intimidate those who havent even used a computer? 4. How friendly is the program? 5. How secure is the program? 6. How many filters will it have to make sure that the votes being submitted are accurate? (I am sure we dont want to hope for UNDO functionality) And a lot of more valid questions that needs to be answered. It takes a lot of trainings and grasroot assistance to make this project fly and sustainable. Good discussion. Thanks!

By not counting them right , Lose some of the votes some where LIke they did here when Last Bush was put in office!

I'd like to know if the transparency issue has been over come? Let us say that if a receipt is printed what information would be proof that the vote was not tampered with? Have you given any thought to the process of accounting for each vote on each machine and all the machines tabulating all the votes together? This simple process can quickly become daunting. Complicated to a point that the average politician wouldn't know whether or not the vote was actually fixed. Electronically we could count all the votes instantly for any election all around the globe. A printed receipt could simple include the votes cast before your vote and show your selection or selections in your voting process. Suppose some hacker dumped in ten votes here and a hundred votes there or changed the voting results to favor one candidate or another? Periodic receipts could be checked through out the day and a person voting for one party or the other would be able to keep track of election results by showing party members how they participated. The independent or voter concerned with their own privacy would not be required to disclose information that they wished to keep private but how private would that information be if the receipt showed prior results? Maybe the only way to reconcile a true vote would be to give a voter a receipt for the vote that they individually cast and then to have a political party meeting where everyone gathers together to prove their personal vote, that count should come close to matching the actual tally on the automated polling device... You really have to trust the programmers like the moderators of a message/discussion board.

For some candidates who are trembled on this kind of twist, or are they?! some sore losers there still have the guts to bleed themselves in white for this and be adhesive to the spot they want for their butts. Let's not restrict ourselves for what's gonna happen. Who knows, someone already holds the GameShark for now?

I guess cheating will always be possible, no matter how one tries to prevent it.. There wil tend to be some nul votes, or invalid votes due to some reason or toher, whereby the system might not accept them.. hehe ^_^ BUt comparing to manual ways, fully automated votes will be much safer, for machines does not life.. hehe

i think only the manufacturer or the company that makes the system can only break and cheat the system they made..they are responsible in the security of their sysrem.even if it is online, hackers will take a long period of time to penetrate the system..thats why the smartmatic company and the comelec are refusing to release the source code..i do hope this coming election will be an honest and peaceful election..

i think there is no such thing as a full proof plan everything can be tweaked but i think with computerization and less people handling things cheating would be lessen

Well, even if they say that there is no way hackers can penetrated they fully automated voting system... i still have my doubts... because hackers are computer genius and are forever challenge to break even the most sophisticated of all computer programs... i just hope in this case they will not do anything because the faith of out country depends on this coming elections... But i think the best/worst way they can cheat is to bribe someone inside who the company who will operate the "counting" or "result" of the election... but with a lot of people wanting to be President... the one willing to pay the most money might succeed... and i hope and pray that wouldn't happen...

Hello Angel, I think it's virtually impossible to do that, it is just that some people are really pessimists and would find always the negative in any given situation. Computers would lessen this for sure, because it would be automated and lesser people will handle them. Happy mylotting and all the best.

in this kind of election, cheating it would be minimized, but it will never be gone. the people who are assigned to manage the voting system could be bribe and upload a virus or something or manipulate the results. although this may be difficult, it is still possible. even though most of the time the cheating would be revealed, it is mostly late and changes cannot be done to the winning party.