Blockchain voting: Virtually impossible to manipulate, says expert

SHAH ALAM - The online voting process using blockchain technology is believed to be difficult to manipulate and is considered highly secure because each vote undergoes an End-to-End Verifiable mechanism.

Powerbloc Generation general manager Sri Utami Dewi Kasman stated that this mechanism ensured that only legitimate voters—those registered and eligible to vote in a particular area—were allowed to cast their ballots.

The system was designed to prevent outsiders or unauthorised individuals from voting on behalf of others, making the voting process more trustworthy and transparent. - File photo

According to her, the system was designed to prevent outsiders or unauthorised individuals from voting on behalf of others, making the voting process more trustworthy and transparent.

"Only those responsible and entrusted to manage the system have access, but even for this group, manipulating the results would still be very difficult.

"Each vote, in theory, has gone through this End-to-End Verifiable mechanism.

"Only eligible voters within the voting area can cast their votes, and each entry is recorded transparently," she told Sinar.

It was reported that the operator of the e-voting system for the PKR elections denied allegations of system manipulation during the party’s branch-level elections.

The PKR election e-voting system employed blockchain technology, where every vote submitted was automatically and permanently recorded in the system without the possibility of being altered, edited or deleted by any party.

Highlighting one of the major benefits, Sri Utami Dewi assured that there was no room for manipulation because all voting transactions could be audited openly, without human intervention.

However, she further stressed that despite the robustness of blockchain technology, no electronic system is completely immune to weaknesses or security risks.

“To avoid any suspicion or allegations of manipulation, the electronic system must be transparent. Each voter should be able to verify their own vote.

"The voting results must also be displayed in real time to ensure the voting process is fair," she urged.

The open-source nature of blockchain technology, she stated, enhances transparency and ensures that verifiability remains a key feature.

Overall, Sri Utami Dewi stressed that the system should be publicly auditable, rather than relying on a 'black box' style data storage that is difficult to understand from an operational perspective.