ECI blocks 68 lakh cyber attacks on counting day
The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Wednesday said there were more than 68 lakh attempts from India and abroad targeting its key election platforms, including the results portal, on May 4 when votes were being counted for five assemblies.
In a statement, the poll authority said ECINET cybersecurity protocols resulted in “effectively countering” over 68 lakh malicious hits on the counting day originating from within and overseas targeting key election platforms, including the results portal.
The ECI said its IT platform ECINET played a central role in streamlining election processes, including real-time monitoring, enabling faster reporting and enhancing transparency during the elections to Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Kerela, Assam and Puducherry.
Since its official launch in January, the ECINET app has witnessed a significant surge in usage and has over 10 crore downloads to date.
The beta version of ECINET was used in the Bihar elections in November 2025. On poll days — April 9, 23 and 29 — the ECINET recorded over 98.3 crore hits, and on the counting day, it recorded an average of three crore hits per minute.
In a significant step towards enhancing security at the counting centres, a new QR code-based photo identity card system was used for the first time on the counting day across all states and Union Territories (UTs) in these elections through ECINET.
On the counting day, over 3.2 lakh QR codes were generated to ensure that only authorised personnel could access counting venues, thereby preventing any unauthorised entry in the counting centres.
