abstract:

Since the ideas were first published in 1981, verifiable election technologies have undergone decades of research successes and deployment failures. This talk will trace the history of these technologies, their evolution, and the practical challenges that they have faced. We’ll then look forward at the potential for near-term successes and the public benefits that may be derived.

bio:

Josh Benaloh is Senior Cryptographer at Microsoft Research where his research focuses on multi-party protocols. He earned his bachelor’s degree from M.I.T. and his doctorate from Yale University where his 1987 dissertation “Verifiable Secret-Ballot Elections” introduced the first application of homomorphic encryption. Dr. Benaloh serves as a director of the 1500-member International Association for Cryptologic Research and chairs the Citizen Oversight Panel for Sound Transit which is investing nearly $1 billion annually on improvements to the Seattle-area transit infrastructure.