2022 Philippine Elections

Transmission router source codes for 2022 polls now in BSP vault

Dwight de Leon

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Transmission router source codes for 2022 polls now in BSP vault

TURNOVER. The Comelec hands over the transmission router source codes to the BSP on May 2, 2022.

Rappler

This is the second time this election cycle that the Comelec turned over source codes to the BSP, a safekeeping measure to ensure there is a copy of the source codes that cannot be tampered

MANILA, Philippines – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) deposited on Monday, May 2, the transmission router source codes in escrow in a highly secured vault at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

The transmission router is a software whose main function is to manage the flow of information from the vote-counting machines (VCMs) and the consolidation and canvassing system (CCS) to their intended destinations.

Only Comelec officials have the keys to the vault’s metal locks and knowledge of the combination codes. The source codes won’t be retrieved unless they become crucial to investigations on poll irregularities.

The safekeeping is in compliance with the amended poll automation law, and seeks to make sure there is a copy of the source codes that will not be open to tampering.

In February, the Comelec also turned over to the BSP the thumb drives containing the source code or the final election software that will be used for the May 9 automated polls.

“I think this is the last one, and we have tested this transmission router in our data centers, and it passed all the necessary modifications,” Comelec Commissioner Marlon Casquejo said during the press conference portion of Monday’s event.

“The technical evaluation committee, through [international certification entity] Pro V&V, has certified that these source codes are operating properly, securely, and accurately. This puts one less worry out of our minds and takes us another step closer to a successful election happening a week from now,” Comelec chairman Saidamen Pangarungan added.

Concerns about the transmission router gained traction in 2019 following a delayed transmission of election results to the transparency server, now infamously known as the seven-hour glitch.

At the time, some critics alleged the existence of a “meet-me-room” or a separate server, but the Comelec said it was just the transmission router, which was meant “to just be a traffic cop” and “was never a facility to store data.” – Rappler.com

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Dwight de Leon

Dwight de Leon is a multimedia reporter who covers President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the Malacañang, and the Commission on Elections for Rappler.