The FBI is particularly concerned with protecting the 2020 American elections. The agency has created various tools that help understand and mitigate the risks posed by cyberattacks by foreign governments.
The FBI's Protected Voices initiative aims to inform and raise awareness among political campaign managers and IT executives about potential cybersecurity vulnerabilities and to help prevent cyberattacks.
“We created these Protected Voices videos to showcase the methods that adversaries can use and to help political campaign managers use sound cybersecurity . Election security is built on cybersecurity,” said FBI Director Chris Wray.
"We hope that campaign managers and IT staff and directors will watch these videos and follow our advice where possible.".
System security
The FBI, in collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), have published short videos that inform and instruct political campaign managers on how to protect systems and networks from attacks by foreign hacking groups.
“The tutorials and other videos explain the nature of external influence and social engineering, highlight the most common vulnerabilities, and offer protection measures to help campaigns, as well as businesses and individuals, protect themselves from cybercrime,” the FBI said.
The most common methods used by foreign governments to intervene and exert influence are:
- Cyberattacks against political campaigns and government infrastructure
- Secret funding aimed at boosting or discrediting a candidate
- Disinformation campaigns , mainly through social media
“In recent months, Protected Voices has been providing more webinars and briefings, specifically for presidential campaigns,” the FBI spokesperson said. “In the coming months, the FBI will expand Protected Voices to provide assistance to congressional campaigns.”
Protection of electoral systems
One campaigner said: “We know that election security is important, but what should we do?”
“The Protected Voices initiative is designed to answer that question. It shows the steps that the campaign IT team should take. It shows the training that every campaign worker should have. It shows where vulnerabilities exist.”
The full package of videos providing guidance, tips, and practices for protecting devices, accounts, and data can be found at fbi.gov/protectedvoices.
