Asset Management
Luxoft’s E-Voting Platform Enables First Consultative Vote Based on Blockchain in Switzerland (HITS)
Story Highlights
Luxoft partnered with the City of Zug and Lucerne University of Applied Sciences in Switzerland to create the first customizable blockchain-based e-voting system to be used by a major economy. To drive the adoption of blockchain-based services in government, Luxoft today announces it is committing to open source this platform and is establishing a Blockchain for Government Alliance to promote blockchain use-cases in public institutions.
“Luxoft is proud to have an opportunity to work together with the city of Zug to explore various blockchain applications,” said Vasily Suvorov, Chief Technology Officer at Luxoft. “As Europe’s leading supporter of blockchain, Zug already accepts cryptocurrency for services, has digitized ID registrations built on the blockchain, and now we have helped them create and try the means to safely and securely move voting online.”
Luxoft built the permissioned blockchain based solution e-Vote, including the platform itself, software and algorithms on Hyperledger Fabric. This was then integrated with Zug’s Ethereum-based digital ID registration application, enabled by uPort, to allow residents to cast votes on the blockchain. The solution uses an innovative encryption technology that on one hand anonymizes the votes and on the other hand allows tamper-proof tally and secure audit.
With help from the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, AWS and n’cloud.swiss, the platform is deployed on three different data centers in the cloud: two in Switzerland and one in Ireland. By distributing the data into three different data centers, security and data loss risks are distributed geographically, making the system more robust. What’s more, the platform can permanently delete voting data within an agreed time, in accordance with Swiss law.
“There is a concern with e-voting as it is a fundamental mechanism for direct democracy,” said Suvorov. “As a result, we believe this technology cannot be owned by a single company. We will make the e-voting platform open source so people can understand what makes up the technology and how it works, ensuring full transparency. Looking ahead, our alliance will encourage more people to develop blockchain-based applications for Governments worldwide.”
