CISA, EAC introduce election risk profile tool

Two government entities said they have partnered to introduce the Election Risk Profile Tool to aid election officials and federal agencies in prioritizing and managing election infrastructure cybersecurity risks.

“There is no question the security of our election systems has vastly improved, thanks in large part to our election officials’ capability to understand where the risks lie in their systems and determine the most effective way to manage those risks,” CISA Director Christopher Krebs said. “Together with our partners at the EAC, we are constantly looking for ways to make the process of mapping out these risks easier and widely available for all of our partners. This is yet another tool to help support election officials to protect the 2020 elections and beyond.”

The tool seeks to aid state and local election officials in understanding the range of risks faced and how to prioritize mitigation efforts as it relates to the Election Infrastructure Subsector while also ensuring technical cybersecurity assessments and services are meeting critical needs providing a sound analytic foundation for managing election security risk with partners at the federal, state, and local levels.

“The EAC has worked to expand our cybersecurity resources for election officials, and the Risk Profile Tool serves as an important security enhancement for network protection,” EAC Chairman Ben Hovland said. “As federal partners, CISA and the EAC are committed to providing useful tools to assist election officials as they run secure, accessible, and accurate elections.”