Can Voters Tell When Their Voting Method Is Secure? Effects of End-to-end Security and Security Theater on Perceptions of Voting Systems

Abstract

The aim of this study was to understand how voters’ perceptions of voting system security might be impacted by the addition of actual security features and fake security features (i.e., security theater) to a voting method. In the context of voting, positive perceptions of security might be more important than security itself because voters must feel voting systems are safe enough to keep their votes secure and anonymous, or else they might choose to avoid participating in an election—potentially impacting election outcomes. To investigate this problem, 90 Rice University undergraduate students participated in a mock election using one of three systems, each associated with differing levels of security: a standard paper ballot, a paper ballot enhanced by end-to-end (e2e) security mechanisms, and a paper ballot that included fake security mechanisms to give the feeling of enhanced security without actually making the system safer. After voting, each participant completed a survey that included questions about voting system security to understand if one system was perceived to be more secure than another. In this study, participants rated the paper voting method with advanced e2e security to be the most secure; both the traditional paper ballot and security theater ballot were found to be the least secure. In summary, the advanced security features positively impacted voters’ perceptions of system security—indicating that people accurately assessed the safety of the provided voting method. This finding is promising and suggests that during real elections, there is the potential for voters to assess accurately a system’s security and then act-on and make decisions based on this information.