Increased Cybersecurity for Illinois Midterm Elections

The Illinois National Guard is bringing in hundreds of cybersecurity experts to help ensure the integrity of the midterm elections and prevent the compromise of election results.

• By Jessica Davis
• Oct 18, 2018

Illinois is taking steps to increase election security as the midterms approach. State Board of Elections Chairman William Cadigan said voters should feel sure that their Nov. 6 votes “will be securely counted.”

Illinois election officials have said no voter registration records were taken and no election results were compromised in the Russian hack that took place in July 2016.  As a result of the hack, however, the State Board of Elections is working to increase cybersecurity to prevent a hacking incident from happening again.

Election officials are working with national agencies like the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, and for the first time in Illinois election history, the National Guard. The Illinois National Guard is bringing in hundreds of cybersecurity experts to help ensure the integrity of the midterm elections and prevent the compromise of election results.

In addition to partnering with outside agencies, Illinois election officials said they have installed greater firewall protections for voter records and election results. Clerks and election judges have also received “detailed cyber training.”

The Department of Homeland Security has allocated about $13 million for Illinois voting security programs to prevent the system from being hacked again.