Feds to test North Carolina election computers for hacking

RALEIGH — More than two years after North Carolina check-in software failed on Election Day, federal authorities will finally examine equipment from a company targeted by Russian military hackers to determine if intentional tampering aimed at disrupting voting occurred.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security analysis of laptops used in Durham County is the first known federal investigation of equipment that malfunctioned during the 2016 election, when Russian hackers infiltrated several states.

The VR Systems electronic poll books malfunction forced officials in the heavily Democratic county to issue paper ballots and extend voting hours. How many voters may have been disenfranchised as a result is unknown.

VR Systems had been targeted the previous August by a Russian spear-phishing campaign, though Chief Operating Officer Ben Martin maintains the company was not hacked as a result. Martin said he believes the April report on Russian interference in the 2016 election from special counsel Robert Mueller was referring to his Tallahassee, Florida, company — the name was redacted — in describing how Russian spies installed malware on the network of a company that "developed software used by numerous U.S. counties to manage voter rolls."

Read more: https://www.greensboro.com/news/state/feds-to-test-north-carolina-election-computers-for-hacking/article_0ea5151a-8550-5370-9149-54cdf4fea6bd.html