Communications of the ACM
U.S. Officials Fear Ransomware Attack Against 2020 Election
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The U.S. government intends to launch a program to shield voter registration databases and systems from hackers ahead of the 2020 election. The Department of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is concerned about ransomware attacks against these databases.
"We are working alongside election officials and their private-sector partners to help protect their databases and respond to possible ransomware attacks," says CISA director Christopher Krebs. CISA will supply educational content, remote computer penetration testing, and vulnerability scans, in addition to guidance on ransomware prevention/recovery.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation stressed the need for states and municipalities to restrict the availability of data about electoral systems or administrative processes, and safeguard potentially exploitable websites and databases.
From Reuters
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