"The Voting Machine Hacking Threat You Probably Haven't Heard About"

Cellular modems that transmit unofficial election-night results are a largely overlooked hacking target that could help those seeking to cast doubt on vote tallies in the November midterm elections. The modems, which use cellphone networks to send vote data from precincts to central offices, assist election officials in meeting the public's demand for immediate results. However, putting any networking connection on an election system opens up new ways to attack it that do not require physical access to machines, and security experts say the risks outweigh the benefits. Nation-state hackers can break into the infrastructure that sends data back and forth, according to Dan Wallach, a Rice University computer science professor who has repeatedly exposed flaws in election equipment. While tampering with unofficial results would not actually corrupt an election's outcome, it could spread misinformation about the accuracy of the vote tally as well as the process's integrity. While no reports of modems being hacked in previous elections have been made, the vulnerabilities are well-known, and hackers have the tools to exploit them. According to some former election officials, the mere existence of these modem vulnerabilities may make it easier for hackers to disrupt midterm elections and future contests. This article continues to discuss the potential exploitation of modems by malicious actors to tamper with unofficial election results. 

Politico reports "The Voting Machine Hacking Threat You Probably Haven't Heard About"