Voting security is usually a top concern in every election, and the issue has once again resurfaced this cycle.
With election day less than two weeks away, the federal agency tasked with preventing cyber, physical, and operational security risks said voters should feel secure in casting their ballots.
"The reality is election infrastructure has never, has never been more secure," said Jen Easterly, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.
Despite safeguards, Easterly said there are still real threats, including widespread disinformation. CISA has spent years working hand in hand with state and local election officials, involving them in the process of preventing voter fraud.
"You have cyber threats like ransomware, distributed denial of service attacks. You have very real threats from our foreign adversaries who are executing malign influence and disinformation operations," Easterly said.
Easterly added that a multi-layered election process makes voter fraud rare and easily detectable. Varying individual state safeguards also help prevent widespread impacts on the presidential race.
CISA also has cyber and physical experts spread out nationwide to assist in election security.
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"Election officials have put in place multiple layers of safeguards, cybersecurity protections, physical access controls to protect election infrastructure from compromise, and that includes pre-election testing of equipment and post-election audits to ensure accuracy," Easterly said.
Alameda County election officials said they are feeling a sense of security leading up to election day.
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"If there are concerns that someone is going to try to vote again either in person or somehow get a hold of another ballot and vote again. In our database, we know that," said Tum Dupuis, Alameda County registrar.
Dupuis said ballots are tracked to prevent double voting. If a ballot is stolen in the mail, it's canceled and reissued. After a person votes, ballots go through a secure chain of custody.
"The security around this process is extraordinary. California has one of the best procedures in place," he said.
As the county prepares to open voting centers this weekend, Dupris said he encourages residents to vote early. He also warns that tampering with ballots and any attempt to rig the election comes with prison time.
"Voter fraud is a felony," Dupris said. "So if we have any suspicion of voter fraud, we hand it over to the district attorney and secretary of state."
