From the Advocacy Committee
March 19, 2024
Electoral Outcomes -- Challenges and Protections
Election Security
Modern technology has as many strengths and opportunities as it does weaknesses and threats. While information is available immediately and right at our fingertips, key aspects of democracy such as voter registration databases, digital voting systems, and communication systems have become prime targets of those seeking to disrupt the democratic process.
To promote acceptance of election results in the current era people must understand the vulnerabilities and have confidence in various electoral security measures aimed at guarding against a myriad of dangers.
Key Challenges:
● Misinformation and Disinformation: False or misleading information may undermine the public’s faith in the democratic process and influence how voters behave. Pervasive use of social media platforms as a primary means for voters to obtain information further exacerbates the problem.
● Cyber Hacking: In the digital age hacking has impacted elections internationally and as technology is ever-evolving, this threat will remain present and become more sophisticated. Critical components of an election’s outcome like the vote tally, voter registration databases, and even the electoral process itself can be affected.
● Physical Security: Onsite polling stations have seen an increase in intimidation in recent years. Other threats such as vandalism, tampering, and various other types of interference must be guarded against.
Protections:
● Public Awareness and Education: Only informed citizens can recognize and properly discount misinformation and disinformation. Campaigns aimed at informing the public of real vs. fake can empower people to critically evaluate information, determine for themselves what is likely to be true or false, and report false information.
● Cybersecurity: Robust protocols are needed to protect systems and databases. And as important as the cybersecurity technologies are, the human element requires focused attention. Everyone connecting to secured election system networks needs to be educated on cyber hygiene: to be on guard for phishing emails; to never click on embedded links in emails; to never connect personal laptops nor other external personal devices to the workplace network; and to frequently use a virus scanner. This threat is constantly evolving, and experts often feel outpaced by disrupters. By adequately funding cybersecurity, including user education, regular audits, secure communication, encryption and other key elements we can mitigate digital interference efforts.
● Paper Trail: Physical records provide an additional layer of results verification. This provides tangible proof in after-election audits, identifies specific discrepancies, and bolsters the credibility of the outcome.
Election security lies at the heart of the entire democratic process. As technology advances, so too do the challenges of protecting electoral outcomes. Government, corporations, and watchful citizens within and across nations must work together to ensure trust, transparency, and fairness. The threats must be recognized and defended against in a cooperative manner to protect the very essence of democracy.