In the current digital age of “Pehle App, Pehle App” (pun intended), an APP appears to be an elixir, an oasis of truth, a divine revelation to all problems. After all, there is an App for everything from online banking to dry cleaning your clothes to fixing a pothole. But is this truly a necessity or hype? Let’s find out. We (at Pollgateway) do not intend to influence this APP’ification trend in any manner whatsoever. While an APP appears to be a low hanging fruit, one needs to tread with caution. The purpose of this article is to create awareness of the relative advantages of a web Application (online poll/voting URL link) as against a Mobile App, when it comes to Online Voting using online election software. Online Voting or eVoting facilitates the use of technology to reach a wide demographic mix to create and cast vote online. During the vote casting phase, an eligible voter should be able to “Vote anytime, from anywhere, from any device without compromising on data security”. The following chart showcases relative technical aspects of each of the online e-Voting platform (Web App i.e. Voting URL) as against Mobile App. CATEGORY Web App (Voting URL) MOBILE APP Prerequisites ✔ None ❌ Android/IOS mobile device Feature Phone Compatibility ✔ Yes Websites and Web URLs are Compatible Across Devices, whereas native apps require a separate version to be developed for each type of device. Furthermore, mobile website URLs are easily integrated within other mobile technologies such as SMS, QR Codes and near field communication (NFC). ❌ No (feature phones such as Jio Phone cannot install custom apps) Installation ✔ None ❌ Voting/Polling MANDATORILY requires download of the Voting software app on mobile device (definitely a bummer as hardly anyone is so excited to vote/poll that he/she wants to download an unknown app) Maintenance from Voter ✔ None ❌ Voter needs to keep the App updated to the latest version to avoid risk of being outdated. An outdated app poses serious security vulnerabilities causing data to be siphoned off Maintenance from App Creator ✔ None ❌ App Developer/creator needs to maintain app conformance with the latest Mobile OS standards. App updates must be pushed to the users in the form of new revisions which explicitly requires download of updated app. Requires app to be developed for both Android and IOS platform Auto Update requirement ✔ None ❌ Almost all mobile devices have App auto update set to “Only on WIFI” thereby limiting the probability of getting new updates. Access to Sensitive User Information ✔ None ❌ Most Likely Android and IOS platforms allow app developers access to sensitive device Information such as identity, Contacts, Location, SMS, Photos/Media/Files, Camera, WIFI Information, Device ID and Call Information) :-P. Most of the users do not foresee these permissions as threats and allow blanket permissions while app installation. Malicious Apps are usually the simplest and easiest way to gain access to your phone, a link you may have clicked or an .apk file that you may have installed could be syphoning your vote data in the background A mobile Voting App will perhaps be used by a voter to cast vote once/twice a year and allowing the app an access to sensitive information on the mobile for this infrequent use is akin to wolf in a sheep’s clothing Memory /Storage Constraints ✔ None ❌ The common and widely used mobile configurations come in 8GB/16GB storage with loads of necessary apps such as Gmail, FB, WhatsApp, Online Banking etc. There is always a memory crunch to install new apps. Prone to mobile device based vulnerabilities ✔ None ❌ Yes. Android is the most targeted mobile OS due to its huge user base and secondly because OEMs usually install their own skins on top, without keeping device security in mind. Broader Reach ✔ Online voting software using Web URLs and Websites are accessible across platforms and easily shared among users and even search engines thereby having far greater reach ❌ Restricted share ability and reach Lifecycle ✔ Perennial ❌ According to some surveys, the average shelf life of an app is less than 30 days and so unless the app is something truly near and dear, it is questionable how long it lasts on a user’s mobile Thus we see that an online elections software using web based URL (Website Link) clears all the checkboxes above and is logically the safest, secure, flexible and easiest option for Online Voting. When it comes to online voting, security is a prominent design consideration. The more the solution is prone to vulnerability the lesser is its viability. But of course, for not-so-serious versions of voting such as deciding winner of a dance/singing competition or a group of friends deciding on where to go for a trek, a mobile App is just fine to vote. The web based URL (Website Link) of the e-voting software can be distributed and shared over all communication channels such as SMS, Email, and WhatsApp etc. While designing the optimal solution for online voting, the following points also come into play: With the recent advent of digital revolution and low cost feature phones (such as Jio phones), feature phones are becoming increasingly affordable for even the lowest per capita income groups. It is estimated that Feature phones still account for 55% of total handset shipments in India and such consumers should be able to use evoting by accessing URL based web link Senior citizens prefer simple feature phones. Web link based voting works just fine We are focusing only on Voter as a user. For other users in the Election office such as Election Commissioner or Secretary, use of mobile App to create online voting and conduct their work is anyway out of the question Mobile app based voting should be considered as one of the options to cast a vote but not ‘The only’ option One must remember that an app is just a type of pre-installed UI/Form with limited processing capabilities restricted and toned down due to the slow processing capabilities of a mobile device processor. Behind the scenes, is a robust and solid, RESTful server side architecture which can be invoked through a web form/mobile app In line with the vision of Digital India, to transform the country into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy, services and benefits should reach to the citizens in quick time and without much hassle, online voting through web based URL (Website Link) is the step in the right direction.
