Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said this week that foreigners tried to hack his office on Election Day in Ohio this year.
LaRose described the failed attempt as coming from Panama and trying to “insert malicious code into his office’s website,” the Columbus Dispatch reports. The hackers attempted a SQL injection technique, which tries to get people’s personal information.
Even though the source of the attack came from Panama, it could be traced back to a Russian-owned company.
“Some of these unsophisticated attacks are ways that they probe for vulnerabilities. They are poking around for soft spots,” LaRose said to the Dispatch.
“The good guys won that day and the bad guys lost,” he added.
Ohio’s Secretary of State said the “Albert” intrusion system successfully notified his office of the attempted attack.
In recent months, Ohio has taken important steps to improve election security for future elections. Last month, Gov. Mike DeWine signed a law that created the Ohio Cyber Reserve. This reserve will be made up of technical experts who defend Ohio from election hacks.
“We’re heading into 2020 with the understanding that our boards of election are going to be a target of cyber-attacks. That’s why we’re so appreciative of Secretary LaRose championing this legislation. By enhancing our security posture and ability to quickly react, we’re going to be more ready than ever to keep our elections safe and secure,” said Rob Frost, the president of Ohio Association of Election Officials.
Furthermore, the Ohio Legislature is considering Senate Bill 94, which mandates voter registration services be certified. Ohio’s Senate unanimously passed the bill earlier this month.
“Make no mistake, our enemies are targeting voter registration systems across the nation,” LaRose said. “By bringing accountability and standards to the vendors that support our boards of elections, we’ll be significantly enhancing Ohio’s elections security posture.
Next week, the Ohio Board of Voting Machine Examiners will be meeting.
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Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of Battleground State News. If you have any tips, email Zachery at [email protected].
Background Photo “Voting Booths” by Tim Evanson. CC BY-SA 2.0.
[…] November, foreigners tried to hack into LaRose’s office on election day, but they were unsuccessful. The failed attack […]
[…] November, foreigners tried to hack into LaRose’s office on election day, but they were unsuccessful. The failed attack […]