Ballots will be counted by hand in the March 15 election after doubts surface over the safety and security of electronic system.

Dark Reading Staff, Dark Reading

February 2, 2017

1 Min Read

The March 15 parliamentary elections to be held in the Netherlands will not rely on electronic vote tally and instead ballots will be counted by hand, reports Reuters. The decision was made by the Dutch government after security experts voiced concerns that the electronic tallying system used was not secure and could be manipulated by interested parties - possibly Russia.

"Now there are indications that Russians could be interested, for the following elections we must fall back on good old pen and paper," Interior Minister Ronald Plasterk told broadcaster RTL.

He does not expect the manual count to take longer than normal.

Voting in the country is done through paper votes and local votes are counted by hand. However, regional and national votes are tallied electronically through a system that involves installing software on outdated Internet-connected computers through CD-ROM.

Netherland’s decision comes as France and Germany too prepare for elections amid concerns that foreign state-sponsored hackers could manipulate election results.

Read Reuters for details.

About the Author(s)

Dark Reading Staff

Dark Reading

Dark Reading is a leading cybersecurity media site.

Keep up with the latest cybersecurity threats, newly discovered vulnerabilities, data breach information, and emerging trends. Delivered daily or weekly right to your email inbox.

You May Also Like


More Insights