THE MYSTERY OF IP 192.168.0.2: A TECHIE ANALYSIS

 

HOST: Good morning, everyone. Welcome to Tech Talk, the show where we explore the latest and hottest topics in technology and how they affect our lives. Today, we have a special guest, Mr. AI, a techie who will share his perspectives on Ret. Brig Gen Eliseo M. Rio’s position paper claim that the May 9, 2022 election was rigged based on a preponderance of evidence.

Mr. AI, thank you for accepting our invitation. We look forward to your expertise to illuminate our viewers on the nuts and bolts of this controversy.

But before we dive into this serious and profound issue, let me just say that this show is not related to or endorsed by TikTok. This is Tech Talk, not TikTok. However, if you are interested in learning more about TikTok, you can just download the app and try it for yourself. But please do that after our show, okay? We don’t want you to miss out on our important discussion with Mr. AI.

So, without further ado, as the timeless catchphrase goes, let’s get ready to rumble.

MR. AI: Thank you for inviting me. I hope I can help clarify some of the issues and questions that many people raised on this controversy.

HOST: As we speak, this is now the most crucial question spreading around the political landscape. Rio claimed that in the first hour of counting after voting closed at 7 PM on May 9, 2022, the “Raw Files” shown on the COMELEC website depicted a number of Election Returns transmitted by VCMs using one private internet address, IP 192.168.0.2 in transmitting 98.8 percent of Metro Manila precinct results as well as of Cavite, Batangas, and other provinces that “mysteriously” transmitted results within an hour of balloting’s end at 7 p.m. Could you expound on this subject and its implications?

SERIOUS SECURITY FLAW

MR. AI: As a techie, I think the use of a private internet address like the IP 192.168.0.2 by VCMs to transmit election results is a serious security flaw that could enable a man-in-the-middle attack through IP spoofing. A man-in-the-middle attack is a cyberattack where the attacker secretly relays and possibly alters the communications between two parties, in this case, between the VCMs election results and the COMELEC Transparency Server. Rio claimed that the data shown by the received ERs of the Transparency Server from 7:00 PM on May 9^th to the afternoon of May 13^th DO NOT MATCH the data shown in the Reception Logs uploaded on the website of COMELEC on March 23, 2023 -- implying that a man-in-the-middle attack took place through IP 192.168.0.2.

IP spoofing is the creation of Internet Protocol packets that have a modified source address to either hide the identity of the sender, impersonate another computer system, or both.

If an attacker can intercept and modify the IP packets sent by the VCMs, they can potentially manipulate the election results and send false data to the main transparency server. This could explain the unrealistic peak count of votes shown by the COMELEC Transparency Server (TS) in the first hour after the voting closed, as claimed by Rio’s position paper. The attacker could also hide his identity and avoid detection by using a spoofed address like IP 192.168.0.2.

HOST: Rio claimed that “The reception Logs shown to the public were never corroborated by the Telco’s Transmission Logs.” Could you explain what are Reception Logs and Telco’s Transmission Logs (TL)? What is the significance of their corroboration?

MR. AI: Sure, I can explain that. Reception Logs are documents that record the data received by a server from various sources, such as the vote-counting machine (VCM). Telco's Transmission Logs are documents that record the data transmitted by a Telco provider from various sources, such as VCMs. The significance of their collaboration is that it can provide an independent and reliable way to confirm that the data received by the server matches the data transmitted by the telco provider, and that there was no tampering or interference with the data during the transmission process.

HOST: I see. So why do you think Rio said that they were never corroborated? What evidence did he present to support his claim?

MR. AI: Well, according to his position paper, Rio said COMELEC Chairman George Garcia committed to showing the Telco’s TL to the public on October 18, 2022, but he never did. Instead, he deceptively showed the RECEIVED VCM TRANSMISSIONS data in a COMELEC Server, which are not the same as the Telco’s TL from COMELEC and its service providers.

Rio was ignored.

UNBELIEVABLE PEAK COUNT

HOST: Rio claimed that “There was an unbelievable PEAK count of 20 million plus votes shown to the public by the COMELEC Transparency Server at 8:02 PM on May 9, 2022, just an hour after voting closed.” Could you explain why this is unbelievable?

MR. AI: This is unbelievable because it means that more than 20 million votes were counted and transmitted in just an hour after voting closed at 7 PM on May 9, 2022. This is very unrealistic considering that nine major tasks had to be done first in all precincts before any vote-counting machine could start transmitting results. According to Rio’s position paper, these tasks would take at least 19 minutes per precinct before any transmission could start. Therefore, it is highly improbable that more than 20 million votes could be counted and transmitted in just an hour after voting closed.

HOST: I see. So why do you think there was such a high peak count of votes in the first hour? What evidence did Rio present to support his claim?

MR. AI: Well, according to his position paper, Rio said that there was a possible manipulation or fraud in the election process. He presented some evidence to support his claim such as:

The sudden and unexplainable drop of votes in the second hour, when logically more VCMs would be ready to transmit results.

The constant vote ratio for all candidates in both the presidential and vice-presidential positions is highly statistically improbable.

The receipt of election results by the transparency server before they were transmitted by the precinct VCMs indicates a discrepancy or inconsistency in the time stamps.

The mismatch between the data shown by the received election returns of the transparency server and the data shown in the reception logs uploaded on the website of COMELEC.

STATISTICALLY IMPOSSIBLE

HOST: That sounds very alarming. Rio claimed that 113 precincts had exactly 1,000 registered voters, all 1,000 voting, or a 100% voter turnout.” Could you explain why this is statistically impossible?

MR. AI: It is statistically impossible that all 113 precincts had the same number of registered voters and actual voters, which is very unlikely to happen considering that many factors and influences affect the voter turnout in different precincts, such as, among others:

The voters’ political preferences and affiliations

The candidates’ competitiveness and attractiveness

The voting facilities’ accessibility and availability

The weather conditions

HOST: That’s beyond the realm of reason. How do you think COMELEC should respond to this allegation?

MR. AI: As a techie, I think COMELEC should be transparent and accountable for their actions and decisions regarding the election process. They should provide valid and verifiable explanations for why they did not show or provide copies of the Telco’s TL to the public or Rio. They should also cooperate with any independent investigation that may be conducted to verify or refute Rio’s claim.

HOST: We have reached the end of our show today. Thank you, Mr. AI, for joining us on Tech Talk. Any final words for our viewers?

MR. AI: Thank you for having me on your show. As a techie, I believe technology can be a powerful tool for improving the efficiency of the election process. However, technology can also be a source of vulnerability and risk. I urge you to be vigilant and informed about technology that affects your lives and your rights as citizens.

HOST: Thank you, everyone, for watching Tech Talk. Have a great day!

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Head photo courtesy of The Times of Israel

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