Tag Archive for: voter

Experts warn of dangers from breach of voter systems due to GOP ‘audits’

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CHRISTINA A. CASSIDY

FILE - In this Jan. 4, 2021, file photo a worker passes a Dominion Voting ballot scanner while setting up a polling location at an elementary school in Gwinnett County, Ga., outside of Atlanta. Republican efforts to question the results of the 2020 election have led to two significant breaches of voting software that have alarmed election security experts who say they have increased the risk to elections in jurisdictions that use the equipment. (AP Photo/Ben Gray, File)

ATLANTA — Republican efforts questioning the outcome of the 2020 presidential race have led to voting system breaches that election security experts say pose a heightened risk to future elections.

Copies of the Dominion Voting Systems software used to manage elections — from designing ballots to configuring voting machines and tallying results — were distributed at an event this month in South Dakota organized by MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, an ally of former President Donald Trump who has made unsubstantiated claims about last year’s election.

“It’s a game-changer in that the environment we have talked about existing now is a reality,” said Matt Masterson, a former top election security official in the Trump administration. “We told election officials, essentially, that you should assume this information is already out there. Now we know it is, and we don’t know what they are going to do with it.”

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Forget homelessness, Sarasota charity tackles Arizona voter fraud

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Wearing a cutout of Donald Trump's face, Jeff LeBaron of Bradenton attends a rally for former President Donald Trump at the Sarasota Fairgrounds on July 3, 2021. DANIEL WAGNER / HERALD-TRIBUNE

Yeah, yeah, so the world has a few problems. Like the virus, earthquakes and terrorists overtaking countries. Big deal. You want a problem? Try losing an election you won. Now that’s a problem. Show a little compassion, will you?

Forget helping the homeless and hungry, thank goodness a charity exists with its priorities straight. One like the America Project, based right here in Sarasota, of course, and in the true spirit of spreading benevolence throughout humanity, its desire is to have the 2020 election overturned and Donald Trump restored to the presidency.

The America Project, registered in Florida as a charity, has given $3.25 million to Cyber Ninjas, the controversial Sarasota computer security company conducting an audit of 2.1 million ballots in Maricopa County, Az.

Patrick Byrne, the former CEO of Overstock.com and one of the America Project’s founders, said during an internet interview on something called The Daily 302 that he thinks results of the Ninjas’ meticulous work on behalf of the nation will be revealed this week. Fraud will be found, he predicts, and enough that 13 to 20 other states will conduct recounts as well.

Wearing a cutout of Donald Trump's face, Marc DiMaggio of Punta Gorda attends a rally for former President Donald Trump at the Sarasota Fairgrounds on July 3. DANIEL WAGNER / HERALD-TRIBUNE

The America Project registered as a charity with the state of Florida on June 18, and nowhere in its mission declaration does it mention donations go toward funding an audit in Arizona, which may be a violation of Florida statute depending on interpretation.

The charity lists 8388 S. Tamiami Trail as its address, which is a UPS store in Sarasota. Cyber Ninjas, which is being investigated by top Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, lists a UPS store on Fruitville Road.

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24-year-old arrested from Saharanpur for creating fake voter IDs by hacking into ECI website, say police | Latest News India

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A 24-year-old man from Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur has been arrested for allegedly creating hundreds of fake voter IDs by hacking into the Election Commission of India’s website, state officials said on Friday.

The Uttar Pradesh police on Thursday arrested Vipul Saini from Nakur town’s Maccharhedi village in Saharanpur district, news agency PTI reported. He has a Bachelor of Computer Applications (BCA) degree that he completed from the Gangoh village in Saharanpur and his father was a farmer, according to the police.

However, the ECI has said that its database is “absolutely safe and secure,” following the incident. “A data entry operator of one of the AERO (assistant electoral roll officers) offices had illegally shared his user ID and password with a private unauthorised service provider in Saharanpur’s Nakud town to print some voter ID cards. Both these persons have been arrested,” PTI quoted an ECI spokesperson.

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Following the initial investigation, the police found that Saini had created more than 10,000 fake voter IDs over a time of three months, at the behest of a person named Armaan Malik from Madhya Pradesh. S Channappa, senior superintendent of police, Saharanpur, said that an amount of ₹100 to ₹200 per fake voter ID was paid to him, according to the PTI report. Also, on further examination of the bank account following Saini’s arrest, a sum of ₹60 lakh was found deposited in it, after which the account was immediately blocked. The police have seized two computers from Saini’s home and are also trying to find the source of the money and more details about Malik.

Meanwhile, Saini had told the police that Malik used to send him the details about each day’s work. Further, the police also said that the authorities in Delhi would now seek the court’s permission to take Saini to the national capital for further investigation about the matter. He would be questioned about possible links with anti-national or terrorist forces, PTI further reported, citing the police.

Former chief minister of UP and leader of the Samajwadi Party (SP) Akhilesh Yadav said that the scam…

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FBI, Homeland Security detail how Iranian hackers stole US voter data

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They made at least some attempt to cover their tracks. Many of the linked IP addresses come from NordVPN’s service as well as other VPN providers.

The attackers obtained voter registration info for “at least one” state, officials said, although they unsurprisingly weren’t specific about the nature of that breach or the volume of data taken.

CISA and the FBI made several recommendations that, unfortunately, would be givens for many other organizations. They advised keeping systems updated with security patches, to scan for common web flaws like SQL injections, and to protect against web shells. Administrators should have two-step verification, too. Like it or not, election systems still have basic failings — it may be a long while before your voting info is truly secure.

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