McCrary Institute to host virtual event on election security amid COVID-19

Published: Sep 18, 2020 10:00 AM

By Austin Phillips

With Election Day just weeks away, many are concerned about the security of the process relating to cyber threats, voter registration databases and COVID-19.

Auburn University’s McCrary Institute will host a virtual event to address those concerns Tuesday, Sept. 22, with special guest Matt Masterson, senior advisor for election security for the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

The event, which will be livestreamed here, will begin at 9 a.m. with remarks from Masterson on federal plans to strengthen election security.

Those remarks will be followed by a moderated discussion with McCrary Institute Director Frank Cilluffo, then a panel discussion and close with an audience question-and-answer session.

The panel will be moderated by Chris Cummiskey, CEO of Cummiskey Strategic Solutions and senior fellow of the McCrary Institute, and it will feature panelists Kathy Boockvar, Pennsylvania Secretary of State; Emily Frye, director for cyber integration for MITRE Corp. and senior fellow of the McCrary Institute; Kathleen Hale, Auburn University professor, director of graduate programs in election administration and faculty fellow of the McCrary Institute; and David Stafford, supervisor of elections for Escambia County, Florida.

Masterson and the panel will discuss topics ranging from cybersecurity tools and efforts to better prepare state and local governments for the upcoming November election; strategies for increased protection of voter registration databases; collaborations to recruit more election poll workers and approaches for ensuring voter safety amid COVID-19.

To ask a question during the event, please comment live on YouTubeFacebook or Twitter.

To register for the event, click here.

Media Contact: Austin Phillips, austinp@auburn.edu, 334-844-2444
Auburn University’s McCrary Institute will host a virtual event Tuesday, Sept. 22, with special guest Matt Masterson, senior advisor for election security for the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

Auburn University’s McCrary Institute will host a virtual event Tuesday, Sept. 22, with special guest Matt Masterson, senior advisor for election security for the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

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