Category: Company News

Happy Holidays 2018 from all of us at Simply Voting! As the year comes to a close, we want to thank our customers and partners for making this another incredible year. It’s been our privilege to support your organizations with secure, transparent, and efficient online voting solutions, and we’re proud of the role we play in helping you engage with your members and stakeholders.

Please note that our office will be closed from December 24, 2018, until January 4, 2019. During this time, a skeleton staff will be available to support ongoing elections. If you require emergency assistance, simply fill out the support form on our website, select the “emergency” priority, and someone from our team will respond as quickly as possible. You can also access resources and guidance through our help portal.

As we celebrate the holiday season, we reflect on the milestones achieved throughout the year, made possible by your continued trust and collaboration. We’re excited about what lies ahead in 2019 and look forward to partnering with you on new elections and projects. From everyone at Simply Voting, we wish you a joyful and peaceful holiday season filled with warmth, laughter, and memorable moments.

Here’s to a successful and prosperous New Year for all!

Simply Voting is now SOC 2 Type I certified. Governed by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), SOC 2 Certification was established in order to provide independent evaluation and confidence about an organization’s controls related to security, confidentiality, processing integrity, availability, and privacy.  A Type 1 report provides a description of the organization’s system as a whole, in addition to detailed testing of the design of the organization’s internal controls, all at one specific point in time.

What the SOC 2 Type I Certification Process Entailed

To achieve this milestone, Simply Voting partnered with A-LIGN, an independent auditing firm renowned for its expertise in compliance assessments. The audit involved:

• Comprehensive interviews with our team,
• Thorough examination of 198 pieces of evidence, and
• Rigorous review of our company’s administration, online voting system, and underlying server infrastructure.

The resulting audit report confirmed that Simply Voting meets the SOC 2 Trust Services Principles for Common Criteria/Security, Availability, and Confidentiality. This demonstrates our commitment to providing reliable and secure voting solutions to our clients.

How SOC 2 Differs from SSAE 16

The SOC 2 audit is more extensive and stringent than the SSAE 16 (Statement on Standards for Attestation Engagements No. 16), which we previously completed. While SSAE 16 focused on financial controls, SOC 2 dives deeper into system operations and user data protection, reflecting a more comprehensive evaluation of our technology and practices.

Why This Matters for Our Clients

Achieving SOC 2 Type I certification is a testament to Simply Voting’s dedication to delivering secure and dependable internet voting solutions. We understand that our clients rely on us to safeguard their election processes and data, and this certification provides independent assurance that our systems are designed to meet their expectations.

This milestone reinforces our ongoing commitment to transparency, accountability, and trustworthiness, core values that define Simply Voting’s mission to deliver secure, fair, and accessible voting solutions for organizations worldwide.

For more information about our commitment to security or how our SOC 2 certification benefits your organization, feel free to contact us or visit our website.

At Simply Voting, we’ve taken the opportunity to review GDPR compliance as an opportunity to also evaluate our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. We want to ensure that everyone’s expectations and responsibilities are clearly defined.

Since Simply Voting’s inception, we have been committed to data security and privacy as we believe that both are critical subjects in today’s world. As you have likely seen over the last few months, many companies and organizations have been working to update their Privacy Policies and Terms of Service. It’s important to demonstrate their commitment to these subjects as well as to demonstrate their adherence to recently enacted regulations like the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

GDPR compliance
We are committed to complying with the GDPR and partnering with other businesses that share our commitment to privacy. We will continue to make changes to our policies and practices to protect your privacy and ensure ongoing compliance with the GDPR.

Privacy Policy update
Our Privacy Policy has been updated with a section to explain Simply Voting’s processing of data and other details in line with GDPR. Furthermore, our Privacy Policy has been updated to better differentiate between:

• the company website and voting system
• as well as between company website visitors, customers, and voters.

Terms of Service update
With respect to the GDPR, we have updated our Terms of Service to incorporate a Data Processing Addendum (“DPA”). EU Customers who use our services do not need to execute a separate DPA with Simply Voting.

We have also updated our Terms of Service to balance a few issues in favour of the customer, and added new sections to elaborate on:

• Our procedure for reporting system failures and security breaches;
• Our security responsibilities;
• Our confidentiality responsibilities;
• Customer security responsibilities; and
• Customer confidentiality responsibilities.

In summary, our commitment to security and privacy remains strong. Whether you are prospective customer, an existing customer, or a voter; Simply Voting is dedicated to fully protecting your data and personal information.

Customers with offline or customized agreements
Please email info@simplyvoting.com in order to receive and review a new Memorandum of Agreement (MoA). This document includes the updated Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.

We are very excited to announce that Simply Voting has finished relocating our headquarters to a new office space with extra room to grow.

Effective immediately, our new address is:

Simply Voting Inc.
5160 Decarie Boulevard, Suite 502
Montreal, QC, H3X 2H9
Canada

Please take a moment now to update your database to reflect our new mailing address. Our main phone number and staff phone numbers will remain the same. Mail sent to the old address will be forwarded to our new address for a limited time.

While our new location is actually just across the street from our old location, it represents a major milestone in Simply Voting’s history. Importantly, our new office features enhanced security, privacy, and fire prevention. It represents our commitment to advancing safe and reliable internet voting technology.

We wouldn’t be where we are today without your continued trust. We look forward to supporting and strengthening digital democracy from our new office space!

This move wouldn’t have been possible without the continued trust and support of our customers. You’ve been an integral part of our journey, and we’re excited to continue building the future of digital democracy from our new office.

As we settle into this new chapter, our focus remains on creating secure, fair, and accessible voting experiences for organizations worldwide.

Thank you for being part of this exciting moment in Simply Voting’s story, we can’t wait to share what’s next!

2017 Holiday Schedule: Simply Voting will be closed for the holidays from December 25, 2017 until January 5, 2018.

Skeleton staff will be available to support ongoing elections. If you require emergency support during this time please fill out the support form on our website, set the priority to “emergency”, and someone will follow up with you shortly.

We wish all of our customers a joyful holiday season and a democratic 2018!

Simply Voting and StockTrack are now integrated for the introduction of online shareholder proxy voting. A streamlined internet voting solution, users can now purchase a secure, customized election from Simply Voting through their existing shareholder accounting StockTrack software. Benefits include automatic tabulation, detailed reports, email and mail compatibility, and cost-efficiency.

With this integration, users can now purchase a secure and customized election directly through their existing StockTrack software, simplifying the process of managing shareholder votes. This innovative solution not only enhances the voting experience but also ensures accuracy and transparency, making it easier for organizations to engage with their shareholders effectively.

The benefits of this integration are significant. Automatic tabulation ensures quick and precise vote counting, eliminating manual errors and saving valuable time. Detailed reports provide clear insights into voting results, helping organizations maintain transparency and build trust with their shareholders. The solution is compatible with both email and mail, offering flexibility in reaching shareholders across various channels. Additionally, this cost-effective approach reduces the expenses typically associated with traditional voting methods.

This partnership underscores Simply Voting’s commitment to innovation and providing reliable, accessible voting solutions for all types of organizations. By integrating with StockTrack, we are empowering businesses to modernize their shareholder voting processes while maintaining the highest standards of security and integrity.

For more details about this exciting collaboration, be sure to read the official press release. Together, Simply Voting and StockTrack are making it easier than ever to conduct efficient, secure, and transparent shareholder proxy voting.

Read the press release.

2016 Holiday Schedule: The Simply Voting team would like to inform you that our office will be closed for the holidays from December 26, 2016, until January 6, 2017. During this time, our team will be taking a well-deserved break to celebrate the season with our families and loved ones.

We understand that emergencies can arise, even during the holidays, so we will be offering emergency support. If you require assistance during this period, please fill out the support form on our website and set the priority to “emergency.” Our team will review the request and follow up with you as soon as possible to provide the support you need. Additionally, we encourage you to explore our help portal, which offers a variety of resources and solutions to common inquiries.

As we close out another year, we want to take a moment to reflect on the wonderful milestones we’ve achieved together with you. 2016 has been a year of growth, innovation, and strengthened partnerships, and we are incredibly grateful for the continued trust and support of our customers and partners. Your feedback and collaboration have been essential in shaping the success of Simply Voting, and we look forward to continuing to serve you in 2017 with even more innovative solutions and exceptional service.

We wish you a joyful and peaceful holiday season filled with warmth, relaxation, and treasured moments. May the New Year bring new opportunities, success, and prosperity to you and your organization. Thank you for your continued partnership, and we can’t wait to work with you in the year ahead.

Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year from everyone at Simply Voting!

Simply Voting has finished relocating our headquarters to a new office space that is conveniently located in Montreal and provides us room to grow.

Effective immediately, our new address is:

Simply Voting Inc.
5253 Decarie Boulevard, Suite 250
Montreal, QC, H3W 3C3
Canada

Please take a moment now to update your database to reflect our new mailing address. Our main phone number and staff phone numbers will remain the same. Mail sent to the old address will be forwarded to our new address for a limited time.

This new chapter reflects our ongoing commitment to growth, innovation, and delivering exceptional service to our clients. The strategically located office in Montreal positions us closer to key partners and provides a collaborative environment where our team can continue to develop cutting-edge solutions for secure and accessible voting. We’re thrilled about the opportunities this move brings and look forward to welcoming clients and partners to our new office as we continue to champion secure and accessible digital democracy!

Our move to this new location marks an exciting milestone in our journey as we continue to expand and innovate.

For 13 years, Simply Voting has been dedicated to advancing safe and reliable internet voting technology. We look forward to continuing to support digital democracy from our new office space!