Ballot verification is performed by the voter at a designated ballot verification page within the Skypunch system. Voters submit the verification code provided in their email to confirm the integrity of their ballot through a cryptographic verification process.
Verification vs Confirmation
Verification should not be confused with confirmation. Confirmation typically means a voter receives acknowledgment that a ballot has been received by the appropriate election managers. For example, in electronic systems, confirmation may take the form of an email referencing a ballot identification number for tracking purposes.
At Skypunch, ballot verification is fundamentally different. Voters still receive an email confirmation. But they also receive a verification code whicih enables a cryptographic check of the ballot itself.
This process confirms not only that the ballot was received and included in tabulation, but also that it has not been altered by anyone — including attackers, administrators, or system operators.
How Verification Works
Ballots are stored in an immutable and cryptographically verifiable digital ledger. When data is committed to this ledger, it is hash-chained using a cryptographic hash function to all previously committed data.
The ledger periodically generates digests representing the full state of all stored data at specific points in time. When a voter submits a ballot, the most recent digest at that time is embedded into that ballot's verification code.
When a voter performs ballot verification, the system extracts this digest from the verification code, recalculates the ledger hash, and compares it to the actual hash of the ledger at the time of verification. When the values match, the system confirms that no tampering has occurred between the time the digest was generated and the moment verification is performed. Even a single character change in the ledger would produce a completely different result, ensuring any modification is immediately detectable.
Viewing the Ballot
After a voter successfully verifies their ballot, they may proceed to view the recorded selections associated with it.