A new software company called Area 1 Security wants to offer political candidates (in the 2020 election) a free tool that prevents hackers from gaining access to their files. However, it is not certain whether the company's proposal for free software will be accepted by the government agency Federal Election Commission (FEC).
FEC lawyers are reportedly advising the committee to vote against this proposal.
In America, it is illegal to offer free products to a political campaign. This can only be done if the FEC gives special permission.
Oren Falkowitz, a former NSA and founder of Area 1, presents his software as a leading solution for avoiding spearphishing attacks, which trick victims with fake emails, prompt them to open malicious links, and then give hackers access to user data.
Such attacks were carried out in 2016 by hackers , who managed to gain access to the Democratic National Committee's email accounts.
Falkowitz said: “Campaigns don’t have the luxury of spending money on expensive security products.”.
Area 1, seeking permission from the FEC to offer the software, reminded the committee that last year Microsoft Corp. was granted permission to “offer a package of enhanced security services to its election-related customers at no cost.”
The FEC made an exception at the time because Microsoft was not seeking to advance a political campaign but to protect its business interests. Area 1 says it wants to do the same.
The FEC, at the time, had said that Microsoft planned to offer this service for various commercial reasons and mainly to protect its reputation, as the possibility of customer accounts being compromised could have significant consequences for the company.
However, the FEC found that Area 1's case is different from Microsoft's. Area 1 failed to demonstrate what business benefit the company would gain by offering the software for free. According to the FEC, what Area 1 is offering is more akin to promoting a political campaign.
The company argued that its profit was the pride of solving a cybersecurity problem that affects all Americans. However, this explanation was not sufficient.
According to the FEC, Area 1 has nothing significant to gain from this move, so its proposal is not accepted.
Of course, the risk of candidate accounts being compromised is high. The FBI has said that political campaigns are one of the top targets for domestic and foreign hackers.
The FEC will make its final decision on Area1 during a public hearing on Thursday.
