TRVote: A New, Trustworthy and Robust Electronic Voting System

We propose a new Direct-Recording Electronic (DRE)-based voting system that we call TRVote. The reliability of TRVote is ensured during the vote generation phase where the random challenges are generated by the voters instead of utilizing the random number generator of the machine. Namely, the challenges of voters are utilized to prevent and detect a malicious behavior of a corrupted voting machine. Due to the unpredictability of the challenges, the voting machine cannot cheat voters without being detected. TRVote provides two kinds of verification; cast-as-intended is ensured during the vote generation phase and recorded-as-cast is ensured through a secure Web Bulletin Board (WBB). More concretely, voters can verify that their votes are cast as intended via a zero-knowledge proof on a printed receipt using QR codes. After the election, the central server broadcasts all receipts in a secure WBB where the voters (or, perhaps proxies) can check whether their receipts appear correctly. In order to implement the voting process, the proposed voting machine has simple components such as mechanical switches, a touchscreen, and a printer. In this system, each candidate is represented by a mechanical switch which is equipped within the voting machine. The machine has a flexible structure in the sense that the mechanical switches can be placed and removed as plug-ins depending on the number of candidates which allows to support arbitrary number of candidates. We show that the proposed system is robust and guarantees privacy of voters. We further analyze that it is universally verifiable and secure against coercion

Anonymous RFID authentication for cloud services

Cloud computing is one of the fastest growing segments of IT industry since the users’ commitments for investment and operations are minimized, and costs are in direct relation to usage and demand. In general, cloud services are required to authenticate the user and most of the practical cloud services do not provide anonymity of the users. Namely, cloud provider can track the users easily, so privacy and authenticity are two critical aspects of security. Anonymous authentication is a technique enabling users to prove that they have privilege without disclosing real identities. This type of authentication can be useful especially in scenarios where it is sufficient to ensure the server that the claiming parties are indeed registered. Some motivating applications in the cloud for an anonymous authentication protocol are E-commerce, E-voting, E-library, Ecashand mobile agent applications. Many existing anonymous authentication protocols assume absolute trust to the cloud provider in which all private keys are stored. This trust may result in serious security and privacy issues in case of private key leakage from the cloud provider. In this paper, we propose forward secure anonymous and mutual authentication protocols using RFID technology for cloud services. These protocols avoid the trustworthiness to the cloud provider. Meaning that, even if the private keys are obtained from the corrupted tags or from the server owners of these tags cannot be traced from the past authentication actions. In fact, anonymity of the users will still be ensured even the private keys of tags are compromised

Norwegian internet voting protocol revisited: ballot box and receipt generator are allowed to collude

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link. open access articleNorway experienced internet voting in 2011 and 2013 for municipal and parliamentary elections, respectively. Its security depends on the assumptions that the involving organizations are completely independent, reliable, and the receipt codes are securely sent to the voters. In this paper, we point out the following aspects: - The vote privacy of the Norwegian scheme is violated if Ballot Box and Receipt Generator cooperate because the private key of Decryption Service can be obtained by the two former players. We propose a solution to avoid this issue without adding new players. - To assure the correctness, the receipt codes are sent to the voters over a pre‐channel (postal service) and a post‐channel (Short Message Service [SMS]). However, by holding both SMS and the postal receipt code, a voter can reveal his vote even after the elections. Albeit revoting is a fairly well solution for coercion or concealment, intentional vote revealing is still a problem. We suggest SMS only for notification of vote submission. - In case the codes are falsely generated or the pre‐channel is not secure, a vote can be counted for a different candidate without detection. We propose a solution in which voters verify the integrity of the postal receipt codes

Risk factors affecting success of urethroplasty in male patients – Single center results

Amaç: Bu çalışmada kliniğimizde üretroplasti yapılan erkek hastalar incelenerek olguların sonuçları ve üret- roplasti başarısı üzerine etkili risk faktörleri araştırıldı. Materyal ve metod: Bu retrospektif çalışmada, üretra darlığı olan erkek hastalarda tek cerrah tarafından uygulanan farklı üretroplasti tekniklerini takiben tedavi başarısını etkileyen faktörleri belirlemek için tek değişkenli ve çok değişkenli analizler kullanılmıştır. Bulgular: 102 erkek hastada gerçekleştirilen üretroplasti vakalarında ortalama yaş 49 yıl, ortalama darlık uzunluğu 3,9 cm ve başarı oranı % 84 olarak belirlendi. Çok değişkenli analiz sonuçlarına göre diyabetes mellitus (DM) varlığı, önceden geçirilmiş üretratomi interna (İÜ) sayısı ve darlık uzunluğu üretroplasti başarısını öngören faktörler olarak tanımlandı. (OR 1.257; 95% CI 0.073-0.909; p=0.035, OR 5.343; 95% CI 2.233-12.782; p=0.005 ve OR 8.683;% 95 CI 2.950-25.561; p=0.025) Sonuç: Üretroplasti, üretra darlığı tedavisinde altın standart bir cerrahi prosedür olmakla beraber DM varlığı, birden çok İÜ öyküsü ve uzun darlıklar tedavi başarısızlığı ile ilişkilidir. Üretroplasti teknikleri birden çok faktör ile değerlendirilmeli ve deneyimli merkezlerde gerçekleştirilmelidir.Background: In this study, male patients who underwent urethroplasty in our clinic were examined, and the outcome of the cases and the risk factors affecting the success of urethroplasty were investigated. Materials and Methods: In this retrospective study, univariate and multivariate analyzes were used to de- termine the factors affecting treatment success following different urethroplasty techniques performed by a single surgeon in male patients with urethral stricture. Results: In the urethroplasty cases performed in 102 male patients, the mean age was 49 years, the mean stenosis length was 3.9 cm, and the success rate was 84%. According to the results of the multivariate analysis, the presence of diabetes mellitus (DM), the number of previous urethratomy interna (IU) and the length of the stenosis were defined as the factors predicting the success of urethroplasty. (OR 1.257; 95% CI 0.073-0.909; p=0.035, OR 5.343; 95% CI 2.233-12.782; p=0.005 and OR 8.683; 95% CI 2.950-25.561; p=0.025) Conclusions: Although urethroplasty is the gold standard surgical procedure in the treatment of urethral strictures, the presence of DM, multiple IU history, and long strictures are associated with treatment fail- ure. Urethroplasty techniques should be evaluated with multiple factors and performed in experienced centers

Acute carpal tunnel syndrome secondary to amyloidosis

Introduction. ACTS secondary to amyloidosis is a very rare situation in the literature, and here, we present a unique case of ACTS secondary to amyloidosis. Case Report. A 61-year-old male patient was admitted to our hospital with complaints of numbness in the lateral half of his 1, 2, 3, and 4 fingers of his right hand. These complaints started acutely, and the patient did not have a history of trauma. His clinical examination was suitable for acute carpal tunnel syndrome. Discussion. Carpal tunnel syndrome, as well as acute carpal tunnel syndrome, may occur based on different causes. ACTS is very rare, especially when it is not caused by a trauma. Here, we presented a unique case of ACTS based on amyloidosis. Conclusion. It should be kept in mind when ACTS may occur in patients with the diagnosis of amyloidosis

A Case Study for Turkey: A Secure Paper-Based Electronic Voting System

A Case Study for Turkey: A Secure Paper-Based Electronic Voting Syste

Rapid determination of trace level copper in tea infusion samples by solid contact ion selective electrode

A new solid contact copper selective electrode with a poly (vinyl chloride) (PVC) membrane consisting of o-xylylenebis(N,N-diisobutyldithiocarbamate) as ionophore has been prepared. The main novelties of constructed ion selective electrode concept are the enhanced robustness, cheapness, and fastness due to the use of solid contacts. The electrode exhibits a rapid (< 10 seconds) and near-Nernstian response to Cu2+ activity from 10−1 to 10−6 mol/L at the pH range of 4.0–6.0. No serious interference from common ions was found. The electrode characterizes by high potential stability, reproducibility, and full repeatability. The electrode was used as an indicator electrode in potentiometric titration of Cu(II) ions with EDTA and for the direct assay of tea infusion samples by means of the calibration graph technique. The results compared favorably with those obtained by the atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS)

Achilles tendon-splitting approach and double-row suture anchor repair for haglund syndrome

Background: Haglund syndrom is characterized as a painful posterosuperior deformity of the heel with possible causes as tight Achilles tendon, high-arched foot and tendency to walk on the outside of the heel. Surgical treatment may be recommended in cases where of insufficient response to nonoperative treatment. This study aims to evaluate the clinical and radiographic results of central Achilles tendon splitting and double-row suture anchor technique in the surgical treatment of patients with Haglund syndrome. Methods: 27 patients with Haglund syndrome who underwent central Achilles tendon splitting and double-row suture anchor were retrospectively evaluated. The results were evaluated by the pre- and post-operative American Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) Ankle-Hindfoot Scale and visual analogue scale (VAS). All patients were evaluated radiographically to assess lateral talus-first metatarsal angle (TMTA), Calcaneal pitch angle (CPA), and the Fowler-Philip angle (FPA) preoperatively and postoperatively. Results: The mean preoperative AOFAS score was 47 +/- 7 points; at the end of the follow-up period, it increased to 92 +/- 4 points (p < 0.001). The mean preoperative VAS score was 9 +/- 0.9 points; at the end of the follow-up period, it was 2 +/- 0.6 points (p < 0.001). The lateral TMTA (preoperative: 5 degrees +/- 2 degrees; follow-up: 4 degrees +/- 2 degrees; p < 0.001), CPA (preoperative: 21 degrees +/- 5 degrees; follow-up: 20 degrees +/- 5 degrees; p = 0.005) and FPA (preoperative: 55 degrees +/- 6 degrees; follow-up: 32 degrees +/- 3 degrees; p < 0.001) values decreased at the end of the follow-up period. Conclusion: In the absence of an improvement to nonoperative treatment methods, central Achilles tendon-splitting approach appears to be an effective and safe treatment option. Level of evidence: Level IV, retrospective case series