NAAT TECH is a company born in Mexico with a presence in ten countries in America, which has grown an identity validation platform, initially focused on the financial sector globally. Now they are looking to take it a step further and offer a remote voting system via mobile phone. And they want Argentina to be the first place where it will be applied.
The company claims that FAD is the leading identity validation platform in Latin America. After the inauguration of Javier Milei and with his project to carry forward the electoral reform, NAAT.TECH has decided offer its FAD® citizen participation platform to the Argentine government free of charge.
According to the company’s accounts, the approximate total cost of the national elections was 112 billion dollars. This amount includes the expenses of the Open, Simultaneous and Mandatory Primaries (PASO), the general elections and the second round. The most expensive item was the general logistics of the electoral operation in 14,500 polling stations, which represented $45,000 million. The expenses for printing the ballot papers followed, $22 billion; payment to the mensary authorities, 8.5 billion dollars; and safety, $5 billion.
The company was founded 18 years ago in Mexico by Carlos Chavarría, who currently serves as president and CEO, along with four other partners. “We have developed anti-fraud solutions for the financial marketaccumulating important success stories with renowned banks such as HSBC, Banorte and also with American Express in Argentina”, says Carlos Chavarría.
The platform uses remote multi biometric technology that allows you to vote from anywhere via mobile devices.
“With proper selection, integration and implementation of remote biometric technology, the will of citizens can be expressed, without be physically at the polling station and without the risk of someone using your ID or personal data for malicious purposes. Mainly because we know that online fraud reports saw an almost 200% increase in 2022 compared to the previous year, according to a report prepared by the Austral University Cybercrime and Digital Evidence in Criminal Investigations Observatory (OCEDIC) . “, said Carlos Chavarría, CEO of NAAT.TECH
The platform, already tested in the financial sector for more than six years, integrates elements ranging from general register validation to 3D life proof, which is 2,000 times more secure than 2D.
“With these biometric security locks, the vote can be cast without being physically present, ensuring not only identity protection, but also avoiding multiple participations. The process begins with an invitation via WhatsApp, providing an access link to the platform. Participation begins with validation of the DNI through the smartphone camera, followed by facial recognition through a 3D proof of life selfie, which is sent for validation to a certified government institute. It continues with a video acceptance agreement where the user is recorded reading and accepting all the terms and conditions of said vote or consultation. All this information, together with the geolocation of the signatory, is recorded in blockchain technology which guarantees the integrity and traceability of the information generated by the consultation, that the voter’s data is secure and his decision cannot be altered,” explained Chavarría .
When asked why they decided to propose this solution to Milei, he replies that they did it because “We are committed to democracy in the region“.
The offer is virtual for now, as Chavarría assures that it will not be before They had no contact with government officials or Milei’s entourage. “We prefer to make it public before anything else, so that everything is transparent and not misunderstood,” he says.
The NAAT TECH system has not been used for voting in any elections so far. However, there are precedents in countries such as Mexico and Spain, where electronic voting is allowed in some regional elections, through solutions from other companies.
Source: Clarin
