Around half the world’s population lives in more than 60 countries holding national elections in 2024 and, with roughly two billion eligible voters, this is being described as the largest election year in history.
But some 47 percent of countries have experienced a clear decline in democratic indices over the past five years, according to a report by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), an intergovernmental organization based in Stockholm, Sweden.
In today’s digital age, election officials are confronted with a complex landscape of cybersecurity challenges. Holding a pivotal role in ensuring the integrity of the electoral process, they must remain vigilant and take proactive measures to avoid disruptions and maintain public trust.
The GCA Cybersecurity Toolkit for Elections, developed in partnership with the Center for Internet Security and sponsored by Craig Newmark Philanthropies, is ready to be implemented now, so it’s ready for the next round of elections. It provides free operational tools to implement the best practices in the EI-ISAC’s Essential Guide to Election Security, starting by determining one’s maturity level.
It also helps assess and manage the risk to election infrastructure by using a risk profile tool from the US Cybersecurity Infrastructure and Security Agency and the Election Assistance Commission.
“The important thing about elections is the day after,” said Brian Cute, Chief Operating Officer and Capacity & Resilience Program Director at GCA. “This is a prime opportunity for election officials to review their cybersecurity practices and make improvements to ensure elections continue to be secure.”
Election officials must build cybersecurity review cycles separate from election cycles to protect the integrity of elections around the world, from fighting misinformation to securing voter data and preventing manipulation attempts.
Timing is just one of the ten recommendations included in a GCA report launched in 2023, with support by CrowdStrike and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES). According to this analysis, cybersecurity “is often not incorporated into the IT infrastructure early enough (ideally as a requirement during system scoping), and it is not defined as a dedicated business risk by Electoral Management Bodies (EMBs).”
To improve the cybersecurity of elections, a whole-of-society approach is needed. Governments, industry, political parties, media, civil society, nonprofit organizations, and citizens themselves all have a role to play in collectively improving the integrity of our elections. This is a key component of our work with Craig Newmark Philanthropy’s Cyber Civil Defense work.
As the Council of Europe’s Secretary General stated this year to mark World Press Freedom Day on 3 May, “as millions of citizens vote in crucial elections in 2024, we must recall the critical role that journalists and quality media play in ensuring access to pluralist and reliable information and diverse opinions and ideas, so that we can make informed choices when exercising our democratic rights.”
From that integral angle, GCA also developed a dedicated Cybersecurity Toolkit for Journalists, also sponsored by Craig Newmark Philanthropies, to offer independent journalists, watchdogs, and small newsrooms effective tools to protect themselves and their sources, data, and reputations.
