For future reference, and before continuing to investigate the IP address from which the comment was sent, I would like to leave a public record of a veiled threat allegedly made by a Smartmatic employee in the comments section of this post:
It turns out that I WORK for Smartmatic, which I joined in 2001. I KNOW about voting systems (which Mr. Alek Boyd does not). I PERSONALLY know the owners of this company (which Mr. Alek Boyd also doesn’t, as he insists on claiming that the owner is Hugo Chávez, which is false), and I believe they are honest, hardworking, and talented professionals (something Mr. Alek Boyd is not and never will be). I am appalled by the ease with which Mr. Alek Boyd spreads lies and more lies, accusing Smartmatic of sins for which he has never provided any evidence, and blaming Smartmatic technology—which he knows nothing about—for evils that only exist in his imagination. The only purpose that seems to drive Mr. Alek Boyd is to inflict as much damage as he can on a decent, fair, and capable company and the talented, hardworking people it employs. That purpose appears to have sponsors, most likely from those companies that have lost significant bids and contracts with Smartmatic, and now want blood. It is evident that Mr. Boyd has found a reliable source of income as long as he keeps spewing his venom at Smartmatic. I wonder if he can continue doing this and still get away with it.
This isn’t the first time this has happened, and it won’t be the last. Because that’s the only thing chavistas excel at—threatening and terrorizing people. Fortunately, for my well-being, I live in London and not in Caracas, where my life could easily be disregarded and made to look like just another example of common crime. I won’t delve into discrediting the message, as Smartmatic is doing a stellar job feeding all sorts of conspiracy theories, for instance, by refusing to cooperate when a CFIUS investigation was launched. I fear it is Smartmatic that needs to clean up its past, not me. I have no ties to dictators and certainly have never taken over 100 million dollars to serve militaristic caudillos.
An update: the IP address of the Smartmatic employee is 200.109.11.253 (DISTRITO FEDERAL, CARACAS, CANTV SERVICIOS VENEZUELA)