INDIVISIBLE Lambertville NJ / New Hope PA

Category: Cybercrime

  • Census Process Faces Challenges of Cybersecurity and Coronovirus

     Contributed by Amara Willey.

    Coming to a mailbox near you at the same time as the coronavirus (COVID-19) hits our shores, the 2020 Census has a huge impact on Federal workings for the next ten years. Determining how many Congressional representatives each state gets and how funding is allocated, the accuracy of the census numbers is vital to our democracy.

    According to the Census form letter itself, results will be used to make decisions about federal funding to communities for schools, roads and other public services; local transportation and emergency readiness preparedness; and the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives, as well as political representation at all levels of government.

    Because for the first time in history, respondents are being asked to answer online, all kinds of issues have arisen. 

    • How accurate are the online results?

    Three quarters of households are receiving an invitation to complete their census online. There is concern amongst Democratic lawmakers that with the coronavirus, the Census Bureau will rely too heavily on internet responses. In addition, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has expressed concern that the Census Bureau has not adequately prepared for the possibility of computer hacking,  stating it “continues to face challenges related to addressing cybersecurity weaknesses, tracking and resolving cybersecurity recommendations from the Department of Homeland Security.”

    • What happens if you don’t have access to the internet?

    Households can still answer via telephone or mail-in form. Also, the Census Bureau estimates that approximately 500,000 temporary workers will be going door to door assisting people with answering the questionnaires. It’s expected that 60 percent of those receiving the Census will fill it out on time on their own.

    • How will the coronavirus affect the Census?

    The estimated time for this door-to-door process is May through July, though that time frame may shift because of COVID-19. The Census Bureau is required to report their findings by December 31, 2020. “The planned completion date for data collection for the 2020 Census is July 31, 2020; however, that date can and will be adjusted if necessary as the situation evolves in order to achieve a complete and accurate count,” the Census Bureau said in a statement released on March 15.

    The date that we are using to report the population is April 1, regardless of when the census is filled out. The best way to help this process is to fill out your form promptly. It will also ensure that you avoid a visit from a Census Bureau enumerator, which will free them up to count more difficult to reach populations, such as the homeless and those without good internet access.

    Resources:

    https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/12/us/2020-census-what-you-need-to-know/index.html
    https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/how-to-avoid-a-census-worker-coming-to-your-door-during-coronavirus-crisis/ar-BB11jK4O
    https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/12/politics/census-bureau-significant-risks-2020-census-gao/index.html

  • WARNING: Our Votes Are At Risk

    Insecure, obsolete, unverifiable.
    These words describe the voting systems used in New Jersey and much of Pennsylvania.
    New Jersey is one of the last five states in the nation allowing paperless, unauditable voting systems. More than 80% of Pennsylvania has unauditable voting machines that make recounts impossible, and prevent any chance of proving our votes have been recorded as intended. If our votes get lost due to computer malfunctions, mistakes, or hacking – all highly possible with our outdated systems – we will never know.
    Nationally recognized expert Andrew Appel, professor of computer science at Princeton University, has done seminal work on voting machine vulnerability. In an interview with NJ.com, Appel shared how easy it is to quickly reprogram voting machines and enable votes for one candidate to go to the other. This actually happened in Cumberland County, NJ, in 2011. A landmark lawsuit resulted. In Zirkle vs. Henry the judge ruled that, “bad computer code had given Zirkle’s votes to Henry and Henry’s votes to Zirkle.” Additionally, it took one of Appel’s students seven seconds to hack into a central processor used for tallying votes. All of New Jersey plus 83% of Pennsylvania, and all of Bucks County are still voting with the systems that can allow this to happen.
    With the threat of hacking greater than ever, we have to act fast.
    “The head of every U.S. intelligence agency says Russia attempted to penetrate elections systems nationwide during the 2016 presidential election, and will try again during this year’s midterm elections.” – Pew Charitable Trust
    The Solution
    Hundreds of computer security experts who testified before Congress agree: The safest way to vote is with voter-marked paper ballots, run through optical/digital scanners to backup each vote, plus non-tabulating ballot marking devices for people with disabilities.
    The Center for American Progress agrees. “Voter-verifiable paper ballots or records are necessary for conducting meaningful post election audits that confirm election outcomes and detect malicious activity. Paperless touch-screen voting systems should be replaced with paper ballots and optical scanners.”
    In “The Myth of the Hacker-Proof Voting Machine,” cybersecurity expert, Jacob D. Stauffer, says, “What I’ve seen in the past 10 years is that the vendors have absolutely fumbled every single attempt in security,’’ In a report published last year on voting machines from ES&S – one of the biggest vendors in the nation, Stauffer and colleagues “found the voting machines and election-management systems to be rife with security problems.”
    “Without a paper audit trail, any recount is just like hitting enter on the keyboard over and over again: You get the same answer and you have no clue if that answer is correct,” Joseph Lorenzo Hall, election security expert.
    Pending Legislation
    NJ Bill A1889, introduced by Assemblyman Andrew Zwicker, is in the process of being amended to prohibit paperless DREs, and specifically mandate voter-marked paper ballot voting systems, optical or digital scanners, and at least one non-tabulating ballot marking device at every polling place in New Jersey. When the amendments are finalized, this bill will be ready for introduction to the committee that will vote on its passage. Work is also in progress to finalize a companion bill in the NJ State Senate. We’ll be keeping you posted on this too.
    Our lobbyists are making sure that the amended language in A1889 is crystal clear, airtight, and completely unambiguous. This is critical. Otherwise election officials can purchase hackable machines that commercial vendors are offering, with promises of easy tabulation and glitch-free use.
    Convincing county voting officials to use paper ballot voting won’t be easy. And convince them we must, since they decide which voting technology will be used in each county. Voting machine vendors are actively pursuing them, some claiming their machines will preclude the need for manual audits and recounts. That would defeat the whole purpose of requiring paper-based systems. Thus, we need to educate NJ and PA citizens fast. See Calls to Action below and stay tuned for more Action Alerts to come.
    In PA, H.R. 3132 – Restoring Confidence in America’s Elections Act was introduced in July, 2017, but appears to be going nowhere. After a yearlong study, The Advisory Committee on Voting Technology recommended amending the Pennsylvania Election Code to require a voter-verifiable paper record in all voting machines. Governor Wolf then directed that all new voting systems have a paper record, however, lack of funding, decertification of existing technology, or designating a replacement date leaves the directive in limbo.
    Verified Voting President Marian Schneider, former special advisor on election policy to Governor Wolf says, “The state can no longer ignore these issues and must take steps to replace its aging voting systems as soon as possible.” Some electronic voting machines were manufactured in the early 2000s, and even though the lifespan of these machines is only 10 to 15 years, they are still in use. Schneider recommends, “implementing the best practice of requiring trustworthy evidence of voter intent . . .voter marked paper ballots together with a method of checking the paper records to make sure that the electronic vote tallies are correct.”
    Many groups across Pennsylvania, including SAVE Bucks Votes, are coordinating visits to Harrisburg, urging legislators to replace old voting systems and fund new ones. We’re trying to introduce them to the most secure systems available for the 2018 elections.
    As in New Jersey, County Commissioners are the decision makers. Repeated attempts to meet with Bucks County commissioners have been made, to no avail. There’s been resistance, and we assume it’s because of the cost. They’ve implied there hasn’t been widespread support for changing the way we vote. That’s why we all need to help educate them.
    Another Big Challenge: Funding****
    In NJ, Governor Murphy has pledged his support for secure verified voting, but our state is cash-strapped and running on a deficit. The paper ballot voting systems described above have been estimated to cost $36 million, which sounds like a lot, but only represents about .1 percent of the State budget. We need to push Governor Murphy to include an appropriation in his 2018 budget and let him know we want him to fund secure voting.
    Our new Secretary of State, Tahesha Way, needs to hear from us too. The Division of Election falls under her purview, and voting machine vendors are already knocking on her door. There’s big money to be made for them if they can convince her that direct recording electronic voting machines, are safe and secure. Our task is to get Secretary Way fully up to speed on the need for paper ballot voting, rather than slick new machines that deliver a doorway to hacking.
    Pennsylvania is also running a deficit. Verified Voting advocates are working in Harrisburg to urge lawmakers to support funding. They’re also looking at alternatives on the County level. Bucks County maintains a surplus general fund to keep its credit rating high. We need to convince the Commissioners that this money could fund new voting systems that are more secure and cheaper to maintain. Look for Action Alerts at the end of this article so you can help.
    ****In late breaking news, the 2,232-page budget bill signed by the president included a provision that election security and technology experts have been pushing for years: money to update the nation’s outdated voting infrastructure. NJ stands to get a portion of that: just under $10 million according to this article from NJSpotlight.com. However, more work needs to be done in a few short months.
    “What I’ve seen in the past 10 years is that the vendors have absolutely fumbled every single attempt in security.” – Jacob D. Stauffer, cyber-security expert quoted in the NY Times
    We recommend that voters make an effort to vote early and to hand-deliver ballots to the county election office. Ballots can be requested online. We strongly suggest hand-delivering ballots to avoid adding to many reported cases of ballots “lost in the mail.”
    THE BOTTOM LINE:
    The only way New Jersey and Pennsylvania will have verified voting in time for the 2018 election is with your help. Spread the word. Share this article, talk to your family, tell your neighbors. The right to vote is a precious one, and it will take all of us to preserve it. We can’t give up if the road gets dicey. We’re bigger than that. The past year has strengthened us. It’s fortified our grit. We know what it is to fight.
    TAKE ACTION NOW!
    In New Jersey:
    Contact NJ Secretary of State, Tahesha Way. Call: 609-777-0884 Fax: 609-292-7665 Email: Feedback@sos.nj.govScript: Please secure our votes! The only way to insure every vote is counted, and none hacked is with voter marked paper ballots, optical/digital scanners, and non-tabulating ballot-marking device for voters with disabilities. No more hackable electronic voting machines.Tweet: MAKE NJ VOTES SECURE, @SecretaryWay. Voter-marked paper ballots, optical/digital scanners & non-tabulating ballot-marking devices for voters with disabilities. We need this now. Thank you. Tweet the message above easily with this click-to-tweet: https://ctt.ec/e_8Ob (You must have a Twitter account; you can edit the tweet before posting it.)
    Contact Governor Phil Murphy Call: 609-292-6000 Fax: 609-292-3454 Email: http://nj.gov/governor/contact/ Facebook: www.facebook.com/governorphilmurphy/

    Script: Please fund secure voting in NJ in time for the 2018 midterm elections on Nov 6th: Voter marked paper ballots, optical/digital scanners, and non-tabulating ballot-marking device for voters with disabilities. No more hackable electronic voting machines. Fund secure voting now. Thank you!Tweet: FUND SAFE VOTING IN NJ, @GovMurphy. Voter-marked paper ballots, optical/digital scanners & non-tabulating ballot-marking device for voters with disabilities. We need this now. Thank you! Tweet the message above easily with this click-to-tweet: https://ctt.ec/U3fMr (You must have a Twitter account; you can edit the tweet before posting it.)

    In Pennsylvania:
    Follow SAVE Bucks Votes on Facebook for constant updates, articles and action alerts. Check out our website, sign our online petition, attend a meeting, help fund our efforts, make suggestions, visit lawmakers with us, get involved a little or a lot, help us make people aware of the issue and create grassroots momentum
    Contact the following County and State Officials using this script:“Please fund secure, accurate, verifiable election systems now. We need voter marked paper ballots, optical/digital scanners, audits, and non-tabulating ballot marking devices for voters with disabilities for every election. The new technologies are cheaper, easier to use and easily verifiable. Decertify the DRE electronic machines now. Help us move forward to secure upcoming elections. Thank you!”
    County Commissioners Rob Loughery
    County of Bucks, Office of Commissioners
    55 East Court Street, Doylestown, PA 18901
    Phone: 215-348-6424
    County Commissioner Diane Marseglia
    County of Bucks, Office of Commissioners
    55 East Court Street, Doylestown, PA 18901
    Phone: 215-348-6425
    County Commissioner Charles Martin
    County of Bucks, Office of Commissioners
    55 East Court Street, Doylestown, PA 18901
    Phone: 215-348-6426
    Contact PA Governor WolfOffice of the Governor508 Main Capitol BuildingHarrisburg, PA 17120Phone: 717-787-2500Fax: 717-772-8284
    Contact PA Secretary of State Robert TorresOffice of the Secretary302 North Office BuildingHarrisburg, PA 17120Phone: 717-787-6458Fax: 717-787-1734
    Bureau of Commissions, Elections and Legislation210 North Office Building, 401 North StreetHarrisburg, PA 17120Phone: 717-787-5280Fax: 717-705-0721

  • The Data Debacle: Cambridge Analytica, Facebook & You

    People from all walks of life have embraced social media, using some kind of interface for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or Snapchat – or all of the above. Perhaps they’ve become inextricably linked to family and friends through a Facebook profile, or use it as a personal news collator. Some prefer to be more of a “lurker,” who rarely interacts but is often there watching. Social media personalities and habits are as diverse as the stars in the night sky – the minute by minute TMI poster, political activists, jokers, travelers and tourists, baby pic and pet lovers. They are you, me, our family and our friends – and we love them.

    All the likes, loves and clicks on Facebook posts in addition to what we post tell a story, a story about our loves and our fears. That information is a gold mine and that gold can be mined. Marketers and advertisers use this information to more accurately target their consumers to “BUY MORE STUFF.”

    But what happens when your social media data is mined and manipulated for more nefarious reasons?

    Cambridge Analytica. That’s what happens.

    It has come to light through Christopher Wylie, a former employee of Cambridge Analytica turned whistleblower, that the company harvested 50 million Facebook profiles under the guise of academic research.

    “We exploited Facebook to harvest millions of people’s profiles,” said Wylie. “And built models to exploit what we knew about them and target their inner demons. That was the basis the entire company was built on.” Revealed: 50 million Facebook Profiles Harvested for Cambridge Analytica in Major Data Breach.

    How did they do it? They did it through the cute little tests and surveys about one’s personality, what country should you live in, what color is your aura, what’s your favorite food, etc. All of this information was mined, manipulated and used to sway public opinion in the 2016 election.

    What’s more is that Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg’s former mentor, Robert McNamee warned of far greater consequences. Per McNamee’s March 20, 2018 interview with NPR host Noel King, McNamee told Zuckerberg and Sandberg, “I’m afraid there is a systemic problem with the algorithms and the business model of Facebook that allow bad actors to cause harm to innocent users of Facebook.” He went on to cite four different examples, one of which was swaying an election and the other; advertising tools that allowed discrimination in violation of the Fair Housing Act.

    And where does Mark Zuckerberg stand on all of this? He told McNamee this, “We think these are isolated. It’s not systemic. And by the way, we’re a platform, not a media company. So we’re not responsible for what third parties do on our platform.” It’s been almost two years since Zuckerberg knew about the data breach until Cambridge Analytica was finally banned from Facebook for violating its terms of use policy. He’s been awfully mum.

    Take action:
    Read more about all the ways third parties can get information about you from Facebook here.

    For info on checking and modifying your settings for third party Apps and taking steps to control what they access, go here.

    If you really want to break up with Facebook there are alternatives. Download your data archive so that you can save your photos to Google photos. And here are other things you can use for the parts of Facebook you might miss.

  • VOTING INTEGRITY: Action needed by Tuesday March 13, 2018!

    I’ve been doing this intensive activism work for almost 15 months and every day I reach into my hope- and fear-filled brain for motivation. The New York Times waits at my door to supply me with a fresh new batch of outrage, and before I’ve filled my coffee cup for the second time, my brain is clicking on what action I can take.

    But what happens when the biggest threat to our democracy, and our response to it, is not sexy enough to be in the news? That’s where we are.

    Here’s the deal. Right now there are clear indicators that the November vote is completely vulnerable to hacking by Russians and other conservative interests. New Jersey is one of the five most hackable states in the nation and our current system is such that even if we are hacked, we don’t even have a check-back mechanism to know it.

    Think about that. A simple software tweak and votes cast for your candidates could be tallied for their opponents … and there is no way to go back and audit or re-count the vote. If you think this is far-fetched, know that this happened in Cumberland County once and was only discovered by chance.

    We are going to work like crazy to elect candidates that represent our progressive values. Before that happens, we need to work like crazy to protect and secure our votes.

    There are a few remedies. One is a system called Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT). This method entails using an electronic device to cast votes and then printing a paper that the voter can view behind a glass, check for accuracy and push a button to verify that the votes on the paper are correct.

    Here’s the rub: VVPAT can be hacked and issue a document that is difficult to see because the print is very small. Most election officials like it because it does not require much more work at the polls and it’s cheaper. But as is the case with most quick, cheap fixes, it’s not sufficient.

    If we are going to fix this problem — really fix this problem — we need three things, and they will cost a lot of money: $36 million. Our current state budget is so deep in the hole that there is very little political will to allocate funds for securing the vote, a convenient reality for those who might benefit from hacking.

    Here is what the experts suggest is needed in order for New Jersey to be unhackable:
    Paper Ballots to be marked by voters.Optical scanners that will read the ballots and tally the votesBallot marking devices for voters with disabilities

    Next Tuesday, Governor Phil Murphy will deliver his budget address. Before then, we need to send him the message that securing the vote is our top priority. Please call, fax, tweet, email and push him, New Jersey Secretary of State Tahesha Way and New Jersey Treasurer Liz Muoio to allocate money in the 2018 budget. It is the ONLY way we are assured our vote will be secure in November.

    Governor Phil Murphy
    Call: (609) 292-6000
    Fax: 609-292-3454
    Email: http://nj.gov/governor/contact/
    Facebook: www.facebook.com/governorphilmurphy/
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/govmurphy
    Tweet: @GovMurphy (Tweet Script: MAKE NJ VOTES SECURE! Put $36 million in your budget for paper ballot voting with optical scanners & non-tabulating ballot-marking device for voters with disabilities.)

    Tahesha Way, NJ Secretary of State
    Fax: (609) 292-7665
    Email: Feedback@sos.nj.gov
    Tweet: @SecretaryWay ‏ (Tweet Script: HELP MAKE NJ VOTES SECURE. $36 million needed in 2018 budget for paper ballot voting with optical scanners & non-tabulating ballot-marking device for voters with disabilities.)

    Liz Muoio, New Jersey Treasurer
    Department of the Treasury P. O. Box 002 Trenton, NJ 08625-0002 609-292-6748