Security News > 2020 > January > Analysts question whether FBI election cybersecurity changes are robust enough
The new guidelines, explained on a media call last Thursday and in a press release last Friday, say the FBI will notify a state's chief election official and other local election workers in the event of any cyberattack.
"Understanding that mitigation of such incidents often hinges on timely notification, the FBI has established a new internal policy outlining how the FBI will notify state and local officials responsible for administering election infrastructure of cyber activity targeting their infrastructure," the FBI statement said.
"The FBI's new policy recognizes the necessity of notifying responsible state and local officials of credible cyber threats to election infrastructure. Each state has a designated person to serve as its chief state election official with ultimate authority over elections held in the state, which often includes certifying election results," the statement added.
"However, most election infrastructure is owned and operated by local governments. Likewise, the local election process is overseen by local election officials."
"The FBI's interactions regarding election security matters must respect both state and local authorities. Thus, the FBI's new policy mandates the notification of a chief state election official and local election officials of cyber threats to local election infrastructure."