A service of Salisbury University and University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Suspicious Activity Found in MD Online Voter Registration

creative commons

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) - Maryland's elections administrator says the state found "suspicious activity" on a computer system it uses for online voter registration before last fall's election.

Linda Lamone says cybersecurity experts determined the system was not penetrated, thanks to "strong security protocols."

She disclosed the activity on Wednesday in response to an inquiry by The Baltimore Sun about alleged Russian cyber attacks on states' election systems. Maryland's experts didn't determine the origin of the apparent attempted breach.

Lamone says the activity didn't compromise vote-counting, which is conducted by local boards of election and is not online. Also, the state online voter registration that was the apparent target is separate from the voter registration database, which is also not connected to the internet.

Don Rush is the News Director and Senior Producer of News and Public Affairs at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.