Delhi Election Results 2025: Can EVM Be Hacked or Manipulated? Here’s How They Work

The discussions around the security and reliability of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) have resurfaced, as they do during every election. As vote counting is currently in progress for the Delhi Assembly Elections 2025, early trends indicate a strong lead for the BJP. Many voters continue to question whether EVMs can be hacked or manipulated to change the election results. Well, here's a closer look at how these machines function and whether such fears hold any truth.

How Do EVMs Work?

EVMs are standalone, non-networked devices; that means they are not connected to the internet, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth, which significantly reduces the risk of hacking as per the Election Commission of India. Each machine consists of two main units:

• Control Unit (CU), which is handled by polling officers, records and stores votes securely.
• Ballot Unit (BU), which is used by voters to cast their vote by pressing a button next to their preferred candidate's name.

Once a vote is cast, the machine locks the data, making it impossible to change or delete votes. The Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) system also adds an extra layer of transparency by providing a paper receipt of the vote cast. The Commission clarified that the current VVPAT system is effective in allowing voters to verify that their votes are correctly attributed to their chosen candidates.

Can EVMs Be Hacked?

Well, a lot of discussion has already been done around this. Since EVMs are not connected to any external network, remote hacking is not possible. Additionally, they undergo multiple security checks, which include sealing and verification before deployment. ECI also conducts mock polls before actual voting to check the accuracy. The EVMs are carried and transported from the polling booth to ECI head offices under strict surveillance.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has repeatedly assured that EVMs are tamper-proof and have been used successfully in multiple elections without evidence of hacking.

Past Allegations and Clarifications

Over the past few years, some political parties have raised concerns about EVM security. However, no credible proof of large-scale hacking has ever been found. The ECI has also invited hackers and experts to test EVM security, but no one has been able to compromise them under strict election conditions.

Despite that, there was a demand for the manual counting of paper slips to prevent any potential hacking. The Election Commission argued that switching to a paper ballot system or similar methods would not only be less efficient but also prone to errors. The Commission firmly stated, "Moreover, there is no fundamental right of the voter to verify through VVPATs that their votes were 'recorded as cast' and 'counted as recorded.'" So voters can be assured that their votes will be counted accurately and securely.