|
The
action represented one of the most concrete steps taken by a
U.S. state to bolster the cyber security of election systems
since the 2016 presidential race, when U.S. intelligence
agencies say Russia waged a digital influence campaign to help
President Donald Trump win.
Virginia's board of elections voted to accept a recommendation
from its state election director, Edgardo Cortes, to decertify
so-called direct-recording electronic machines, which count
votes digitally and do not produce paper trails that can be
checked against a final result.
Barbara Simons, the president of Verified Voting, a nonprofit
that advocates for auditable elections, applauded the decision
as "a critical step toward securing its elections".
At least 21 states had their election systems targeted by
Russian hackers last year leading up to the November 8 contest,
according to the Department of Homeland Security. While a small
number of systems were breached, there is no evidence any votes
were manipulated, the agency concluded.
Arizona and Illinois have publicly confirmed that hackers
targeted their voter registration systems. Other states said
they had not been informed whether they were among those to have
their systems scanned.
Most states will not hold a major election until November 2018,
but Virginia will elect a new governor and other statewide
officials this November.
Five states still rely solely on direct record electronic
machines, according to Verified Voting. They include New Jersey,
which will also elect a new governor this year.
Eight other states rely on a mix of paper ballots and paperless
direct recording electronic machines, the group said.
(Reporting by Dustin Volz; Editing by Andrew Hay)
[© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2017 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
|
