State to fund election security upgrades

OLYMPIA — The Washington Secretary of State’s office announced Monday in a news release that they will provide Washington county elections officials with up to $80,000 to improve local election security. More than $3 million is available statewide through the Information Security Funds program.

“Election security and protecting our election systems from cyber threats remain my office’s top priority,” said Secretary of State Steve Hobbs in the release. “A significant amount of work to secure our elections, however, resides at the county level. This additional funding will go a long way in helping counties enhance their election security efforts, especially as cyber threats continue to escalate in severity and frequency.”

According to the release, counties can use the funding to purchase or upgrade their security software and hardware, hire IT security personnel, make structural improvements and conduct other changes that protect election systems from cyber threats and security risks.

The announcement specified that counties that wish to apply for funds must have an installed and operational Albert sensor that is monitoring the network for cyber threats and attacks. The application deadline is June 14, 2024.