Trump Officials Asked Election Security Agency to Secretly Obtain and Hack a Voting Machine, Report Finds
Career staff rejected the plan as political interference, and the request came as CISA had lost more than 1,000 employees, officials said.
- A few months into President Donald Trump's second term, political appointees at the Department of Homeland Security requested that the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency secretly acquire and hack a voting machine, reporting findings to the White House.
- The Trump administration dismantled CISA upon returning to office in January 2025, laying off over 1,000 employees through the Department of Government Efficiency and slashing funding that left the agency unable to perform typical election security work.
- Officials directed staff not to alert voting machine manufacturers of any flaws discovered, breaking standard cybersecurity practices. Career staff resisted, saying the task was impossible given workforce cuts; appointees eventually abandoned the request.
- Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes and other state officials expressed deep distrust, saying CISA was "literally nonexistent" during critical midterm planning, forcing states to independently secure their own election networks.
- While CISA released a late security plan in September, experts warn the greater risk is political: an administration that stepped back from election security work may still dispute results if favored candidates lose in November.
12 Articles
12 Articles
Former officials say Homeland Security appointees wanted machine hacked without telling its maker
Officials fear cybersecurity agency meant to protect US elections compromised by Trump
A few months into President Donald Trump’s second term, political appointees at the Department of Homeland Security made an unusual request of its agency focused on cybersecurity: Secretly acquire a voting machine and hack it.The appointees wanted the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency to procure the machine, examine it and report back the findings so they could be given to the White House, according to two former administration of…
“This Cybersecurity Agency Is Supposed to Protect U.S. Elections. Officials Fear It’s Been Compromised by Trump.”
ProPublica: A few months into President Donald Trump’s second term, political appointees at the Department of Homeland Security made an unusual request of its agency focused on cybersecurity: Secretly acquire a voting machine and hack it. The appointees wanted the… Continue reading The post “This Cybersecurity Agency Is Supposed to Protect U.S. Elections. Officials Fear It’s Been Compromised by Trump.” appeared first on Election Law Blog.
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