CISA, FBI: U.S. Elections are secure despite Russian interference attempts

Welcome to the latest issue of The Breach Report, a cybersecurity newsletter from the creators of the Cybersecurity Careers Blog. Be sure to subscribe via email or RSS.

CISA: U.S. elections have never been more secure

Today is November 5, 2024, and millions of voters across the United States are headed to the polls to vote on the next President. Since the 2016 U.S. election, Americans have been on guard about social media manipulation, foreign interference, and election integrity. Most of the concern revolves around foreign interference, with nations such as Iran and China trying to hack political campaigns (including Biden, Harris, and Trump members) or somehow hack and disrupt statewide voting machines.

The good news?

Jen Easterly, Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), told reporters in a media briefing yesterday that “our election infrastructure has never been more secure.”

Cybersecurity hacks against organizations, government agencies, and consumers have become normalized. However, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), CISA, and Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) want Americans to trust that their vote will count and not be erased in a cyberattack.

Russian disinformation spreads on U.S. Election ballot fraud

Despite the measures the U.S. government is taking to secure the election, it doesn’t mean that foreign interference attempts will stop.

The FBI, CISA, and ODNI released a joint statement on November 1, 2024, to assure voters that viral videos pretending to be from the FBI about ballot fraud were fake:

“The IC [sic: Intelligence Community] assesses that Russian influence actors manufactured a recent video that falsely depicted individuals claiming to be from Haiti and voting illegally in multiple counties in Georgia. This judgment is based on information available to the IC and prior activities of other Russian influence actors, including videos and other disinformation activities. The Georgia Secretary of State has already refuted the video’s claims as false.”

The statement continues, “Russian influence actors also manufactured a video falsely accusing an individual associated with the Democratic presidential ticket of taking a bribe from a U.S. entertainer.”

The group released an update on November 4 elaborating on Russia’s disinformation and foreign interference activities:

“Russia is the most active threat. Influence actors linked to Russia in particular are manufacturing videos and creating fake articles to undermine the legitimacy of the election, instill fear in voters regarding the election process, and suggest Americans are using violence against each other due to political preferences, judging from information available to the IC. These efforts risk inciting violence, including against election officials. We anticipate Russian actors will release additional manufactured content with these themes through election day and in the days and weeks after polls close.”

Where to get accurate election and polling information

According to CISA Director Jen Easterly, state and local election officials and websites are the best sources for accurate information about the voting process and election operations.

Nation-states and foreign adversaries heavily utilize social media platforms to spread disinformation, so any news on the platforms should be preceded with caution. Each social media platform has its own rules and policies for verifying or removing inaccurate information, and it may spread virally before it is flagged for inaccuracies or taken down.

You should also be aware that foreign nations and entities have made many other attempts to sow discord and distrust in the U.S. Election process. To learn more about these tactics and how to spot them, read about pre- and post-election tactics on Cyberscoop.

Today’s Cyber Wall of Shame

Be sure to vote, America.

Until next time…

Rob Waters
Founder
The Breach Report + Cybersecurity Careers Blog

P.S. - Do you want to start a newsletter yourself?
You can with beehiiv. Create one today with a free trial.
Disclaimer: The Breach Report may contain affiliate links. Read our Advertising policy page.