70% of people do not want to vote. The electoral environment is not so predictable. If some new political entity emerges, it could attract that 70%. Voting machines are secure enough, but the way they are already used as printers leaves something to be desired. According to the supplier company, the paper somehow causes problems. The software is secure and reliable enough. This was stated by cyber security expert Assoc. Zlatogor Minchev in "Day ON AIR".
"In terms of trust, the way it is counted indicates that something is not right. The solution is to count in a different way. Let's vote electronically. This machine can do it, but the legislator does not want, because the human factor is excluded. We have to look for another technology," added the expert.
The electoral commission is in some way politically charged and it is good for the election to have a different one, he is emphatic.
"Each machine, when it goes to the polling station on the day before the election, prints one control slip. If it is printed, there is no way the machine has a problem. The hash code is written on the ballot itself, what do we have to check in advance? There was unnecessary hysteria in the last election. It is good to develop Bulgarian software. We drive ready because it is profitable for certain political entities. There are two solutions - new political formations and voting technology that looks different," added Prof. Minchev for Bulgaria ON AIR.
In his words, it is obvious that the machines are doing the job to some extent, but they are getting too expensive.
"The machine manufacturer says that because of the paper, it can refuse to extend the shelf life, because the printers are defective, and all this is very expensive. We will handle it technologically. We cannot give more than BGN 10 million per election and say that this is the right decision. Either we should remove them altogether and switch to paper voting, or look for another type of technology," explained the guest.
According to him, cyberattacks will occur in the media space.
"We will finish on time, but whether there will be machine voting, the committee will say. The idea of optimization is not the best. A way has to be found to implement the legislation more quickly, and we cannot change it. The counting system itself is well-established and secure. It is also duplicated - we have two flash drives with the results. Replacement of the result can only be done on the basis of human participation", Assoc. Minchev is categorical.