Second device verification

If you activated the option to verify via a second device in your online election with POLYAS, you as a voter can use a second Internet-enabled device (e.g. a smartphone) immediately after voting to verify that your ballot paper(s) arrived in the ballot box as intended.

1. Procedure after voting

 After you have submitted your vote(s) in your online vote, you arrive at step 5 of the voting process. This confirms the receipt of your vote(s) in the digital ballot box. A QR code is also displayed here, along with a time-based one-time password.

Attention: Leave this page open in the browser on your first device. You need it or the one-time password that is displayed there for verification on the second device.

Learn more about how voting with POLYAS works, how to log in to the voting system, and how to make the right choice in our detailed instructions on the voting process.

 

This QR code allows you to use the second device to verify your vote and also to download a receipt for your vote by clicking on “Download confirmation”. 

This receipt confirms that the ballot paper(s) were received and stored in the ballot box. It contains the ballot-paper fingerprint, an encrypted identification number of your ballot paper, and confirmation from the voting system that the ballot paper was registered. 

You can send the receipt to election auditors for external verification to ensure that your ballot paper has not been removed from the ballot box. You cannot read the receipt yourself.

Your election organizer cannot use the information on the receipt to draw any conclusions about you as a voter.

 

2. Verification by second device

To verify your vote on a second device, use the device to scan the QR code. With many smartphones, you can do this with the camera. Start the camera and hold it over the QR code for a few seconds, as if you were taking a picture of it. If no notification appears, the camera of your device does not have a scanner. For Apple devices, you can use the settings Control Center to add a QR code scanner. First look in your settings or, if you can’t find what you’re looking for here, download a free and preferably data-privacy compliant app.

After scanning, a web app opens in the browser of your second device.

Your voter ID was transferred directly to the web app when you scanned the QR code and cannot be changed manually. With certain election configurations (login via SecureLink), the voter ID may consist of many seemingly random characters.

In the web app, you enter the time-based one-time password displayed on your first device under your voter ID. Please note that a password is only valid for 30 seconds before a new password is generated. This serves as a security measure. After clicking on “Login” you will be forwarded to the verification.

In the next step, the verification app informs you that the login was successful and you can carry out your verification. Click “Verify ballot”.

You will now see the ballot paper(s) as it / they entered the ballot box. 

The candidate or answer option you selected is ticked on the left. 

Below the vote(s) you can download your confirmation of voting again. Here you can also end the process by clicking on “Complete verification”. 

 Note: If the vote displayed is not correct, please contact your voting organization.

After the unequivocal verification of your vote, you can close the browser window. You have now successfully completed the verification and have received the confirmation of your vote.