Ohio Secretary of State Approves New Voting App For November Election
Ohio SOS spokeswoman Caroline Quinn explains, âThe app is great because anyone can download it and install it on almost any mobile device. The app will ask if you are registered to vote when you first launch it. If you are registered here in Ohio, you can enter your voter registration number and you will be able to vote. If you arenât registered yet, you will be able to instantly register to vote by answering a series of questions that will verify your identity and current residency status in Ohio.â Quinn also explained that the app will give you the option to âvote early like an absentee ballotâ but you can wait until election day if needed. The app will stop accepting votes at the same time physical poll locations in the state close. âThis is the answer to the question of how to get more citizens out to vote. By allowing them to vote literally anywhere in the state at any time, we expect to see record voter turnout this year,â added Quinn. âWe have the app safeguarded to only count the vote if the IP address logged when the app user votes is based in Ohio. Once the user votes one time, the app will go into a dormant mode until the next election nears and we again enable voting.â Quinn also added that during the off months the app will allow voters to update their address and party affiliation as needed. Electronic voting security analysts are up in arms over Ohioâs groundbreaking app. âThis is just unconscionable,â said Cliff Patterson of the watchdog group Darksider Voting. âThey apparently have no idea how easy it is to spoof an IP address. With minimal effort anyone in the *world* will now be able to vote in Ohioâs next election.â Voter privacy advocate Gloria Barton is also not happy with the âOhioMyVoteâ app. âThe app is dangerous from a privacy standpoint. Not every smartphone and tablet user understands basic internet security. They will potentially be transferring personal information to the Ohio government servers in the clear. It would be a field day for identity thieves on election day. Letâs be realistic, because of this app most people will wait until election day to register and then vote. WIFI and cell networks are just not secure enough to transmit this type of sensitive information. Ohio should beÂ ashamed.â Spokeswoman Quinn refutes the concerns by stating that, â(the opponents) of our app just donât understand the level of safeguarding the app developers built into this app. Weâve tested this app internally for months and the app testers reported the app was rock solid.â The app is currently available as a $1.99 purchase in both the Android app store and the Apple app store.