Oslo & Barcelona, July 7 2014 – As the adoption of online voting continues to grow across the globe, the trust demonstrated in strategic projects such as the eVote project in Norway – which has received over a 94% voter trust evaluation – proves key. The online voting technology, security and best practices provided by Scytl has ensured that the Norway eVote pilots are at the forefront of the most secure online voting elections implemented to date.
In an effort to provide alternative and innovative voting channels to help increase accessibility for marginal groups, such as disabled or expatriate voters, the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development in Norway conducted Internet voting pilots in 2011 and 2013 with Scytl Online Voting technology. During these pilots, 168.000 (in 13 municipalities) and 250.000 (in an additional 15 municipalities) voters respectively had the choice of casting their ballot online as an alternative voting channel during the advance voting period during the parliamentary elections.
Though the pilots for internet voting in Norway have been put on hold due to political disagreement, they have proven a success in ensuring the adoption and trust of the new voting channel.
- High levels of voter trust in Internet voting with over 94% of online voters reporting their high trust in the new channel voting option.
- Municipal and county elections: 16.6% of census voted electronically in municipal and county elections. 73% of these votes were cast online during the one month advance voting period.
- Parliamentary elections: 36% of the census voted via the Internet vs. 17% percent in 2011. 77% of these votes were cast online during the one month advance voting period.
The Norwegian online voting pilots have received widespread international acclaim for the use of a verifiable cryptographic voting protocol, which allowed third parties to perform detailed audits of the voting process and vote tallying. In the midst of political debate, the security concerns of the voters included in the pilots were laid to rest with the evaluation reports for the trials showing extremely high levels of voter trust (94%). In addition to the trust shown in the online voting channel, Norway remains at the forefront of the most secure online voting elections implemented to date by implementing a combination of online voting security and accessibility best practices:
- Confirmation cast-as-intended via return codes
- Verification of counted-as-cast via vote receipts
- Publically accessible code (both client & server)
- Mobile device security and compliance
- ADA compliant and overseas voting enfranchisement
“We are extremely proud of seeing how the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development pioneered the way for the implementation of secure online voting projects. Irrespective of the current political decisions, Scytl will continue to help ensure forward thinking countries such as Norway to implement leading edge secure online voting technology and best practices for secure, transparent, accessible and auditable elections,” concludes Mikel Irizar, VP Marketing at Scytl.
As a conclusion, and as stated in the The Carter Center evaluation of the Norwegian internet voting pilots, compared to electronic voting systems which require high amounts of specialized hardware, internet voting systems allow for agile and secure elections with relatively little additional outlay for the elections system. The Carter Center recommendations fall in line with those provided by Scytl: online voting systems should begin being implemented in small ways (ie: elections of local councils, universities, or particular referenda with low political/financial impact) and later expand to more overreaching audiences. The ongoing development of secure, accessible, auditable and transparent online voting systems such as the Norway pilots will play a key role in building confidence in Internet voting in the future.
About Scytl
Scytl is the global leader in secure election management and electronic voting solutions. Specializing in election modernization technologies, Scytl offers the first end-to-end election management and voting platform, providing the highest security and transparency standards currently available. Scytl has capitalized on its more than 18 years of research to develop election-specific cryptographic security technology protected by more than 40 international patents and patent applications, positioning Scytl as the company with the largest patent portfolio of the industry. Scytl’s solutions have been successfully used in more than 35 countries throughout the world over the last 10 years, including Canada, the United States, Mexico, Ecuador, the EU, France, Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, Bosnia-Herzegovina, the UAE, India and Australia. Scytl is headquartered in Barcelona, Spain with strategic offices in Canada, the United States, Peru and Greece as well as field offices in the UK, Ukraine, Australia, Malaysia and Brazil. www.scytl.com
Media Contacts
Scytl
Leticia Barcia
Senior Director Marketing Communications, Scytl
+34 934 230 324