Category Archives: Federal Election Commission

It’s hard for campaigns to be transparent without aiding attackers

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Everyone knows what happened to John Podesta in 2016. Hillary Clinton’s campaign manager clicked on a phishing email, and as far as we know, it was the first time a cyberattack shaped a presidential election. This time around, the campaigns are more focused on recognizing and stopping phishing attacks. That’s good, because phishing has become way more sophisticated over the last four years, including the painstaking research smart attackers run. So if we were to see a repeat of 2016, where would hackers conduct their homework? They could look no further than the Federal Election Commission, whose website illustrates how tough it is to balance transparency and security. The bad guys are looking, too Check out the FEC’s campaign finance data repository. It enables anyone to see where campaigns are spending their money: They’re required to list individuals, vendors, and others they are paying to support their operations. The site […]

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FEC approves anti-spearphishing service for campaigns at low cost

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The Federal Election Commission approved a request Thursday from an anti-spearphishing company, deeming it permissible for the security vendor to provide its services to campaigns and political parties at a discount without violating campaign laws. The FEC expressed trepidation last month over whether it could approve the request from a company, Area 1 Security, to provide low or no cost services to campaigns. A debate stemmed from FEC concerns that a security firm, by offering a markdown on normally expensive services to campaigns, could inappropriately curry favor with lawmakers. This decision is one in a series of approvals the FEC has issued in recent months as it recognizes the serious threat foreign adversaries pose to U.S. elections. “Area 1 has cleared the way for candidates to arm themselves with the best technology available to protect against a repeat of the disastrous cyber-intrusions in prior election cycles,” Dan Petalas, outside counsel for Area 1, told CyberScoop. Area 1 now has […]

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FEC: Campaigns Can Use Discounted Cybersecurity Services

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The U.S. Federal Election Commission (FEC) said today companies can offer discounted cybersecurity services to political campaigns without running afoul of existing campaign finance laws, provided they already do the same for other non-political entities. The decision comes amid much jostling on Capitol Hill over election security at the state level, and fresh warnings from U.S. intelligence agencies about impending cyber attacks targeting candidates in the lead up to the 2020 election. Continue reading FEC: Campaigns Can Use Discounted Cybersecurity Services→

FEC considers whether its legal for campaigns to accept discounted anti-spearphishing services

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In its latest effort to provide cybersecurity companies clarity on whether they can lawfully provide cybersecurity protection to political campaigns for free or at a low-cost, the Federal Election Commission indicated this week it could be close to  greenlighting anti-spearphishing services in a case currently before the commission. That tentative conclusion, not guaranteed until the FEC issues a formal advisory opinion, was reached Thursday during a commissioners’ meeting on a request from anti-spearphishing company Area 1 Security. It marked a shift from how the FEC appeared to be leaning on the issue earlier this week. The FEC’s legal team on Monday issued two draft opinions which both recommended blocking Area 1 from providing anti-spearphishing services at a discounted rate over concerns the lower rates would effectively serve as an in-kind contribution that could curry political favor with politicians in the future. Existing campaign finance law bars corporate contributions to campaigns, an issue that has given campaigns reason to pause on signing up […]

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FEC allows Harvard nonprofit to provide free cybersecurity services to campaigns

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The Federal Election Commission has decided that Harvard’s Defending Digital Democracy Project’s non-profit, “Defending Digital Campaigns,” may provide free and low-cost cybersecurity services to political campaigns without violating campaign finance laws, given the fact that there is a “highly unusual and serious threat” posed to U.S. elections by foreign adversaries. The driving force behind the FEC’s advisory opinion, which FEC Chair Ellen Weintraub issued Tuesday, is the fact that there is a “demonstrated, currently enhanced threat of foreign cyberattacks against party and candidate committees,” she writes in the advisory. In the ruling. Weintraub notes the FEC’s decision in partly due to the other efforts by the government, primarily to expose and prosecuting foreign adversaries, has not done enough to protect campaigns and political parties. “[F]oreign cyberattacks, in which the attackers may not have any spending or physical presence in the United States, may present unique challenges to both criminal prosecution and […]

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