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Any system that allows someone to confirm their vote is a system that allows people to be forced to vote for someone.

Natanael_L 10y ago
Depends on how the verification is done. If it is verifiably derived from your raw vote, then yes. But if it's is tied to the process of voting such that it doesn't reveal the contents but confirm it was recorded right, then it can work. See 3-ballot, and also my suggested scheme; https://roamingaroundatrandom.wordpress.com/2014/06/16/an-mpc-based-privacy-preserving-flexible-cryptographic-voting-scheme/ https://roamingaroundatrandom.wordpress.com/2014/06/16/an-mp...
- sanswork 10y ago
  That was an interesting read thank you.
ClayFerguson 10y ago
The "system" in blockchain is always a single database file (that changes over time) but that can be downloaded by anyone at any time, and it's history can be analyzed in private and in secret by anyone any time. It has a checksum at any point in time, so you can know for sure your copy has not been tampered with, or even write a web app to allow others to analyze it, and none of the analysis forces anyone to do anything. You are apparently very confused about how this technology works.
- sanswork 10y ago
  I'm very familiar with how blockchains work. But if you can verify your vote then I can tell you to prove to me you voted for the person I told you to.
  - ClayFerguson 10y ago
    Someone can also compel me to use my own password to log into my bank account and transfer all my money to them. Every new technology that has ever been invented has always had people like you who can think up highly statistically insignificant scenarios where the technology can be misused.
    - sanswork 10y ago
      You think people being compelled to vote for a specific person is an unlikely event? Unions, employers, organised crime, parents, etc have all over the years tried to force people to vote a specific way. If voting is verifiable they can be successful.
      - ClayFerguson 10y ago
        Even with blockchain it would still be "secret ballot". Each person would have their own encryption key they use to lookup their own vote. No one could check how I voted unless I allow them to, just like no one can get into my bank account unless I allow them to.
        sanswork 10y ago
        I didn't say they could I said people in positions of power in your life could make you show them. Parents: Show us you voted for X or you are disowned. Employer: Show me you voted for X or you are fired. Criminal: Show us you voted for X or we'll break your knee caps. Politician: Show me you voted for me or I won't give you that contract
        ClayFerguson 10y ago
        If society decides the risk of these types of behaviors is significant they could pass a law making it illegal to ask someone how they voted. For those who would violate such a law even if it existed, they are by definition criminals, and already have the ability to tell you "Give me your banking passwords, or else". Blockchain itself won't cure all the problems with humans being criminals in this world, but blockchain itself DOES cure the problem of hacker-proofing voting data. BTW: even if the blockchain data were totally held all within local governments only, it STILL addresses at least the problem of tampering at any level other than where the information is first collected. Even if the blockchain DB doesn't go as fine-grained as per individual it still "hardens the system" considerably from hackers, in a way that paper could never do, because recounts of paper is susceptible to human miscounts (both intentional and unintentional), and blockchain is absolutely not.

Depends on how the verification is done. If it is verifiably derived from your raw vote, then yes. But if it's is tied to the process of voting such that it doesn't reveal the contents but confirm it was recorded right, then it can work. See 3-ballot, and also my suggested scheme; https://roamingaroundatrandom.wordpress.com/2014/06/16/an-mpc-based-privacy-preserving-flexible-cryptographic-voting-scheme/ https://roamingaroundatrandom.wordpress.com/2014/06/16/an-mp...

sanswork 10y ago
That was an interesting read thank you.

ClayFerguson 10y ago

The "system" in blockchain is always a single database file (that changes over time) but that can be downloaded by anyone at any time, and it's history can be analyzed in private and in secret by anyone any time. It has a checksum at any point in time, so you can know for sure your copy has not been tampered with, or even write a web app to allow others to analyze it, and none of the analysis forces anyone to do anything. You are apparently very confused about how this technology works.

sanswork 10y ago
I'm very familiar with how blockchains work. But if you can verify your vote then I can tell you to prove to me you voted for the person I told you to.
- ClayFerguson 10y ago
  Someone can also compel me to use my own password to log into my bank account and transfer all my money to them. Every new technology that has ever been invented has always had people like you who can think up highly statistically insignificant scenarios where the technology can be misused.
  - sanswork 10y ago
    You think people being compelled to vote for a specific person is an unlikely event? Unions, employers, organised crime, parents, etc have all over the years tried to force people to vote a specific way. If voting is verifiable they can be successful.
    - ClayFerguson 10y ago
      Even with blockchain it would still be "secret ballot". Each person would have their own encryption key they use to lookup their own vote. No one could check how I voted unless I allow them to, just like no one can get into my bank account unless I allow them to.
      - sanswork 10y ago
        I didn't say they could I said people in positions of power in your life could make you show them. Parents: Show us you voted for X or you are disowned. Employer: Show me you voted for X or you are fired. Criminal: Show us you voted for X or we'll break your knee caps. Politician: Show me you voted for me or I won't give you that contract
        ClayFerguson 10y ago
        If society decides the risk of these types of behaviors is significant they could pass a law making it illegal to ask someone how they voted. For those who would violate such a law even if it existed, they are by definition criminals, and already have the ability to tell you "Give me your banking passwords, or else". Blockchain itself won't cure all the problems with humans being criminals in this world, but blockchain itself DOES cure the problem of hacker-proofing voting data. BTW: even if the blockchain data were totally held all within local governments only, it STILL addresses at least the problem of tampering at any level other than where the information is first collected. Even if the blockchain DB doesn't go as fine-grained as per individual it still "hardens the system" considerably from hackers, in a way that paper could never do, because recounts of paper is susceptible to human miscounts (both intentional and unintentional), and blockchain is absolutely not.