FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. \u2014 Florida Gov. Rick Scott ordered state officials Wednesday to expedite the acquisition of a $19 million federal grant aimed at protecting the state\u2019s election systems from cyberattack, one day after the state\u2019s top elections official said the money wouldn\u2019t be available until after the November election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The money is part of a $380 million national election protection program President Donald Trump approved in March. Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner, the state\u2019s chief elections official, had said Tuesday at the annual convention for the state\u2019s 67 county supervisors of election that the money couldn\u2019t be distributed earlier because it requires legislative approval. Scott ordered Detzner, his appointee, to file the necessary paperwork to access the grant soon so the money can be available before the election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Florida election officials were put in a negative international spotlight during the 2000 election recount that put George W. Bush into the presidency over Al Gore and there have been periodic problems since.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe integrity of our elections is paramount, and we\u2019ll keep fighting to ensure that every Floridian continues to have confidence in our elections process,\u201d Scott said in a statement. Scott, a Republican, is running for the U.S. Senate in November against the incumbent Democrat, Bill Nelson. Floridians will also be electing a new governor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When federal computer security experts asked the county election officials at their meeting Wednesday if they have plans for countering a cyberattack, only about a third raised their hands, but all said they had hurricane contingencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
U.S. Homeland Security officials told them a cyberattack would do more damage to their systems and reputations than any natural disaster \u2014 and after a hurricane might be when they are most vulnerable to being hacked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe bad guys are looking for an opportunity, they hit you when you are down,\u201d said Klint Walker, a Homeland Security elections security expert. \u201cThe bad guys are on that….they are going to target you during those times of stress.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Matt Masterson, a senior security adviser with Homeland Security, told supervisors their adversaries could be foreign governments or groups, criminals stealing information, political operatives trying to steal an election or agents trying to reduce the public\u2019s confidence in democracy. It\u2019s for that reason that election security is a key part of the federal anti-cyberattack program alongside electrical grids, dams and other infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSophisticated and persistent actors are targeting our systems \u2014 that\u2019s our reality now,\u201d Masterson said. \u201cAnd it is not unique to Florida.\u201d He showed how the Islamic State defaced the North Carolina election website, while identity thieves broke into the Illinois and Arizona systems. Such incidents erode the public\u2019s confidence in the elections system, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, he said, the supervisors need to strike a balance. He said it would be possible to design a nearly hack-proof computer system, \u201cbut no one could vote on it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bobby Beasley, supervisor of elections in the Panhandle\u2019s Walton County, said hackers tried unsuccessfully to get into his county\u2019s system in 2016 along with others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe realize it is a problem,\u201d Beasley said, saying his county is adding a stronger system aimed at thwarting hackers. \u201cWe have to stay one step ahead of them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Broward County Elections Supervisor Brenda Snipes said her county\u2019s voters \u201cshould feel very secure. We stay on top of things.\u201d Her office recently lost a lawsuit for destroying ballots in a congressional election before they were allowed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Walker, who worked for the Defense Department before moving into election security, said it was a \u201chumbling moment\u201d when he realized his previous work protected soldiers\u2019 lives. \u201cIt is probably even more humbling when you realize you are protecting people\u2019s freedom, their right to vote,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Florida Gov. Rick Scott ordered state officials Wednesday to expedite the acquisition of a $19 million federal grant aimed at protecting the state\u2019s election systems from cyberattack, one day after the state\u2019s top elections official said the money wouldn\u2019t be available until after the November election.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":53713,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":10,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"coauthors":[1328],"class_list":["post-17243","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cyber"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"TW4GXZCFYFAVBBPI63S2C5T5M4","arc_canonical_url":"\/critical-infrastructure\/2018\/05\/23\/governor-wants-florida-to-hurry-up-on-getting-election-security-money\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"\n