Network Security

How Hacked Elections Impacted the Security Industry

By Marcos Colon

 Russia’s efforts to hack the 2016 presidential campaign had an immense impact, not just in this country, but all over the world. When you scale things back and focus solely on the cyber realm, it was quite the wake-up call.

The hacking campaign targeted a total of 39 states in a direct attempt to disrupt America’s political system, either attempting to sway the judgment of many citizens or in some cases delete or alter voter data. With the looming 2018 midterm elections, Russia’s meddling is still top-of-mind to many security practitioners. And while they may not all be directly involved in securing voting systems, the 2016 event served as a reminder that we’re in a much more interconnected world, according to Chris Wysopal, CTO at CA Veracode.

“It really broadened how we think about security,” Wysopal told InfoSec Insider during a recent video interview. “Not as technical controls to a particular system, but thinking about social engineering and the impact that social networking has on manipulating people.”

In the full interview below, Wysopal discusses how the 2016 presidential election hack broadened the horizon on how security warriors think about defending their data and offers up advice on what they should consider when it comes to protecting sensitive information.

Mark your calendars for the upcoming InfoSec World Conference & Expo for more insight on similar topics, all shared by the top industry experts.

 Patrick Tomasso

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