As Technograph reports:

Cayetano, at a press conference Friday, said that if any IT expert can establish that the system to be used in the 2010 polls is not secure from fraud and tampering, “Comelec should cancel the contract, save the P11 billion and sue for damages the contractor in the event of such successful hacking.”

He said he would rather revert to the manual counting of votes if the computerized system would lead to wholesale cheating.

The senator does not seem to realize that even the most well-designed system will have flaws that someone will eventually discover—especially if they have such a massive incentive to do so.

Why would the senator insist on canceling the system’s implementation if (actually when) an exploit is found? Wouldn’t it make more sense to collect the data on any holes discovered, plug them, and thus maximize the $2 million reward’s impact?

It seems Mr. Cayetano’s paranoia about automating elections in the Philippines is clouding his judgment. What do you think, dear readers?

Post from: The Gadget Blog