Up to 35 Million 2018 Voter Records For Sale on Hacking Forum
Just weeks before the midterms, voter information from 19 states has turned up on the Dark Web. Continue reading Up to 35 Million 2018 Voter Records For Sale on Hacking Forum
Category Archives: election cybersecurity
Democrats and Republicans split over using hacked material in campaigns
Another Democrat-Republican feud is showing that when it comes to politically charged hacking, politics may not stop at the water’s edge. The divide is focused on whether political parties should be allowed to use insider information that’s provided by hackers; similar to what occurred at the state level in 2016. Last week, a Democratic lawmaker on the House Intelligence Committee introduced a bill that would punish federal candidates if they fail to notify the FBI whenever a suspected hacking group offers them political dirt. On Thursday, Rep. Eric Swalwell introduced the “Duty to Report Act.” The proposed law would make it a crime for campaign staffers to not tip the government off to certain suspected hacking activities. Swalwell unveiled the bill on the same week as the two-year anniversary of the now infamous Trump Tower meeting, where Donald Trump Jr. met with a Russian lawyer who ambiguously offered damaging political […]
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Senators want National Guard on call for cyberattacks
A pair of Senate Democrats have introduced legislation that would give the National Guard a bigger role in defending everything from election systems to dams from cyberattacks. The bill from Sens. Maria Cantwell, Wash., and Joe Manchin, W.Va., would set up National Guard “cyber civil support teams” in every state and territory “to bridge the gap between federal and non-federal cybersecurity efforts,” the senators’ offices said in a release. The bill would put $50 million toward the National Guard teams, which would be tasked with preventing and mitigating the impact of cyber incidents, training critical infrastructure operators, and relaying classified threat information from U.S. Cyber Command to the states and private companies. States would have until September 30, 2022 to make their National Guard cyber teams operational. Another Democrat from Washington State, Rep. Derek Kilmer, has introduced companion legislation in the house. “As cyberattacks on the United States increase, we must […]
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How Congress could handle cybersecurity-focused bills in 2018
As the year begins anew for Congress, lawmakers face a daunting legislative list that includes decisions on a number of cybersecurity-focused laws. CyberScoop polled a half dozen people who work on cybersecurity policy issues to come up with a verdict on each piece of possible legislation — and get their broader take on the possibilities for cyber law-making in 2018. The experts looked at the following bills: A new DHS cyber agency: H.R. 3359, passed by voice vote in the House in December, is awaiting action by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. Election cybersecurity: S. 2261, introduced in December with bipartisan support, and referred to the Rules and Administration Committee. A companion bill in the House, H.R. 3751, was referred both to the Administration and Intelligence Committees. Internet of Things security standards: S.1691 was introduced in August and referred to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. Companion […]
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Bipartisan bill calls for more coordination between federal, state officials on election cybersecurity
A bipartisan group of senators introduced legislation on Thursday that aims to protect U.S. elections from foreign meddling through cyberattacks, citing reports from the intelligence community that Russia explored such interference in the 2016 election. The bill, called the Secure Elections Act, would facilitate communication among the federal, state and local levels of government on cyberthreats to elections. Specifically, it would require the Department of Homeland Security to expedite security clearances for state election officials to review information on such threats. The legislation also seeks to provide guidelines for how to secure election systems and would provide grants states to implement those guidelines and upgrade their election equipment. The bill would also create a “Hack the Election” program that would allow independent researchers to assess the security of election systems. The provision doesn’t specify whether it would have to be a bug bounty program like the U.S. military’s recent efforts. James Lankford, R-Okla., […]
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Election cybersecurity should be priority for new DHS secretary, senators say
Sens. Amy Klobuchar and James Lankford published a letter on Tuesday asking newly confirmed Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen to make election cybersecurity a priority for her tenure, citing concerns about alleged Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election. The senators, who are both on the committees for Appropriations, Homeland Security and Intelligence, say there must be more coordination between state and federal agencies to protect elections, which are run by the states, from cyberattacks. “Election security is national security, and our election systems have become a target for foreign adversaries,” Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Lankford, R-Okla., wrote. The Department of Homeland Security in January designated election systems as “critical infrastructure.” Klobuchar and Lankford praised that designation but said that more must be done. They called for improved information sharing on the state and federal levels. Security clearances for state election officials, which would allow them to review classified materials about cyberthreats, should be expedited, the senators said. The senators also said the […]
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Wyden asks White House to get more involved in boosting election cybersecurity
Sen. Ron Wyden has asked the White House to quickly improve the security of election systems, saying that leaving the matter to states “is irresponsible and a total abdication of the federal government’s primary role in matters of national security.” In a letter to White House National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster, Wyden, D-Ore., asks that the White House to do the following: Designate a senior official to oversee election cybersecurity and have that official brief Congress regularly about cyberthreats. Direct the Secret Service to include cybersecurity in its oversight of a presidential candidate’s security. Direct the National Institute of Standards and Technology and Department of Homeland Security to create a standard by which to “grade” states on their election cybersecurity. Ask DHS to make political campaigns a part of the country’s critical infrastructure and provide them with cybersecurity assistance if they ask for it. Earlier this year, DHS notified 21 states that […]
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Former DHS secretary issues stark warning on election cybersecurity
Former Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson on Thursday warned members of Congress that additional actions to standardize and improve the cybersecurity of state election systems must be taken before the 2018 mid-term elections and the 2020 presidential election. “National elections will be decided in key precincts in key states,” said Johnson, testifying before a task force of congressional Democrats investigating cyber threats to election infrastructure. “In other words, the integrity of our election outcomes on a national level dances on the head of a pin.” Johnson, who issued multiple public statements in the run up to the 2016 presidential election referencing attempts by Russian hackers to infiltrate election systems in dozens of states, said although he knows of no evidence that any ballots were altered, he remains very concerned about the integrity of state election systems, particularly voter registration databases. “Last years’ experience was a wake-up call,” Johnson said. […]
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Intel bill puts DNI in charge of countering Russian election meddling
The nation’s top intelligence official will have to assess spy agencies’ response to Russian election meddling last year, devise a whole-of-government strategy for combatting similar effort in the future, if a Senate bill that advanced this week becomes law. The bill, S.1761, the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018, passed out of committee this week with a single vote dissenting. The bill in its current form would require a number of reports to Congress on a variety of issues regarding cybersecurity incidents targeting the federal government in the last year. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore, said in a statement he voted no, “over a provision that could set a troubling constitutional precedent” — by identifying Wikileaks and its senior leaders as “a non-state hostile intelligence service often abetted by state actors.” “My concern,” he said, “is that the use of the novel phrase ‘non-state hostile intelligence service’ may have legal, […]
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Cybersecurity doubts may spook voters in future elections
A new poll says growing concerns over cybersecurity could lead to millions of Americans staying home during the 2018 midterm elections and the subsequent 2020 presidential election. More than one in four American voters will consider not voting in upcoming elections due to concerns over cybersecurity, according to a new poll published Wednesday by the U.S. cybersecurity firm Carbon Black. That’s a jump of nearly ten percentage points from last year’s poll. The doubts are sharpest when it comes to the ability of state and local election authorities to defend against a cyberattack. Less than half of voters (45 percent) trust local authorities on cybersecurity, a number reflecting last month’s report that “election-related systems in 21 states that were targeted” by Russian hackers during the 2016 presidential election. Yet, less than half (47 percent) of American voters believed the 2016 election was influenced by foreign entities. That’s a sharp break with the U.S. intelligence community, but is […]
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