Both offer an unnerving glimpse into the weaknesses of today's election technology. He's been featured in two documentaries - Kill Chain: The Cyber War On America's Elections and the Emmy-nominated film, Hacking Democracy - that pull the curtain back on the U.S.
The 54-year-old is an expert in the field. In nearly all cases, the election deniers claim they are searching for evidence of voter fraud.įor Hursti, one of the greatest threats to voting devices is not necessarily hacking, but human incompetence. Meanwhile, Michigan is one of several swing states, including Georgia and Colorado, where officials have launched investigations into possible election tampering or interference by Donald Trump supporters who hope to subvert the 2020 election. In the post on eBay, Hutchison stated that the device had been used in "the most recent Michigan elections." Hutchison did not respond to NPR's requests for comment. He snapped it up then immediately put it up for sale on eBay. If it was not, then the machine is mine and I can get started" on his analysis, he said.ĬNN has reported that the eBay seller, Ean Hutchison, who lives in Ohio, found the Dominion-made machine on a Michigan Goodwill website for just $7.99. "I'm waiting to find out if it was stolen - that would make illegal - or not. Hursti said he is waiting on the FBI or some other law enforcement agency to pick up the 2020 device from his home in Connecticut. "They really had no idea, and that is one of the biggest dangers" to election security.Īs of Wednesday, the machine was still in the same unopened box it arrived in nearly two weeks ago. "They didn't know a device was missing until they started looking to see if there's a missing machine," Hursti said. It's something he does whenever he buys a device online, he explained. He forked over $1,200 then, in an effort to clarify any lingering questions about the ImageCast X's provenance, he sent an email to Michigan's secretary of state office alerting them of the deal. "I've never taken a look inside one of those," he said, with some excitement. That's why he bought the Dominion ImageCast X machine as soon as he saw it online, he told NPR during a phone interview. Hursti is a cybersecurity expert who is often contracted by state-level election officials to test vulnerabilities in voting machines. Election Assistance Commission says voting machines should be meticulously inventoried and kept under lock and key "in a tamper-proof location, preferably within the election office." In Michigan, they were used to print voter ballots.) (The Dominion-made apparatuses are built to function as voting machines or ballot printing devices. "We are actively working with law enforcement to investigate allegations of an illegal attempt to sell a voter assist terminal acquired in Michigan," Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, who is up for reelection in November, announced in a statement last week.Īnd, in an additional tweet, Benson noted that the voting machine was originally from Wexford County and clarified that it was not used to tabulate ballots. Harri Hursti has bought about 200 used voting machines without incident, but the one he purchased on eBay last month is now the subject of a state investigation, with Michigan officials determined to find out how the device ended up for sale online.
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