Secretary of State Partners with Georgia Tech Researchers to Advance Fight Against Cyber Threats

Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger is launching a partnership with Georgia Tech, the Georgia Institute of Technology, to combat cyber-threats to Georgia’s election system. This new effort will provide Georgia with the cyber expertise necessary to stay ahead of the continuously evolving threats to our voting infrastructure.

“I am thankful to be working with a premier academic institution like Georgia Tech, whose cybersecurity program is ranked second in the nation,” said Raffensperger. “Together, we will be able to combat the growing cyber threats to our voting system and Secure the Vote in Georgia.”

“Safeguarding the security of our critical infrastructure is an ongoing, strategic focus for Georgia Tech and its researchers,” said Chaouki T. Abdallah, Georgia Tech’s Executive Vice President for Research. “Together with our university peers, we are proud that our researchers can contribute their expertise to the State of Georgia to protect our election systems.”

“There are many who claim to be cyber experts,” said Deputy Secretary of State Jordan Fuchs. “We are honored to work with Georgia Tech on real world solutions to better secure and defend the integrity of the vote.”

Raffensperger has made cybersecurity a priority throughout the process of implementing the new paper-ballot voting system in Georgia. In August 2019, Raffensperger hosted an election security roundtable with experts from around the country, including representatives from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Microsoft. In early January 2020, Raffensperger launched a partnership with the Georgia Cyber Center and Augusta University’s School of Computer and Cyber Sciences to protect Georgia’s election system against cybercrime. In the wake of rising tension with Iran earlier this year, Raffensperger coordinated with DHS to heighten security against potential cyberattacks from foreign threats.

Raffensperger has consistently spoken with and heard feedback from the nation’s top cyber security experts. This partnership ensures Georgia’s voting system is protected by the state’s, and the nation’s, top minds in election security.

This is a press release from the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office.