DENVER — Gov. Jared Polis issued an executive order Monday last week activating a Colorado National Guard unit to assist with statewide cybersecurity during the upcoming election.
Under the order, up to nine members of the Guard’s Defensive Cyber Operations Element will train with and assist the Secretary of State’s Office with election cybersecurity defense efforts ahead of Election Day on Nov. 8. The unit’s support will end on or before Nov. 30, unless Polis extends the order.
Secretary of State Jena Griswold requested the National Guard’s support with election cybersecurity last week, according to the order. The unit was also deployed to assist with election cybersecurity during Colorado’s June primary election and the November 2021 election.
“Outside of Colorado, voter registration databases have been compromised by cyber actors hacking into various systems,” the executive order reads. “While cyber actors are unable to modify voter records, breaches could result in the release of voters’ personally identifiable information. The exposure of voters’ personally identifiable information does not threaten the integrity of our state elections, but could undermine public confidence in the system and suppress voter registration."
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