Undark: A scientist's quest for unhackable voting machine

Undark magazine profiled a University of Cincinnati alumnus who creates new voting software.

Juan Gilbert, a professor of computer science at the University of Florida, earned his master's and doctoral degrees in computer science from UC's College of Engineering and Applied Science.

He has dedicated much of his career to election security, inventing electronic voting systems that have been used in elections in Ohio and New Hampshire.

His latest invention is an electronic voting machine surrounded in clear glass so voters can see and verify their paper ballot as it is printed once they cast their votes. Gilbert told Undark that the machine offers more transparency — literally because of the glass — than some other systems.

Election security became a national issue after the 2020 presidential election when some Republicans alleged, without evidence, that voting machines were compromised. Now voting machine companies are suing right-wing media outlets and several high-profile supporters of former President Trump for defamation and seeking billions of dollars in damages.

According to Undark, Gilbert, a native of Hamilton, Ohio, has challenged hackers to try to compromise his latest voting system.

Read the Undark profile.

Featured image at top: A sign at the Hamilton County Board of Elections. Photo/Andrew Higley/UC Marketing + Brand