Experts and National Security Agency Cyber Director Rob Joyce have emphasized at the RSA Conference the expanding cybersecurity threats targeted at election campaigns as the midterm polls near, CyberScoop reports.
"The worry in all of election security is trust and confidence that weve delivered a safe and secure election. And if you know if elections are subject to ransomware, or if theres a botnet that runs a denial of service, what you'll find is thats probably going to, in this day and age, escalate and be an issue of trust," said Joyce.
Increasingly prevalent ransomware attacks around the world are a particular concern that should be considered by campaigns, according to Microsoft Senior Security Strategist for Critical Institutions Ethan Chumley, who also noted that phishing attacks remain to be the key threat targeted against candidates and their staff.
Meanwhile, Google Account Security Partnership Leader Grace Hoyt said that the use of surveillance-for-hire technologies in election compromises has also been gaining traction.
Ransomware has become more dangerous than ever – and that’s why as a society we need to get more proactive about prevention and draw the best people into the fight.
Twenty-five percent of operational technology organizations in the U.S., and other parts of the world have evaded data breaches this year, compared with only 6% in 2022, mostly due to the 17% decline in insider breaches from 2022 to 2023, reports SecurityWeek.
Several U.S. defense and government organizations have been targeted by state-backed Chinese hacking group Bronze Silhouette, also known as Volt Typhoon, for military intelligence over a period of at least two years, according to The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future.