Just like American election 2016 the voters’ data has also become a joke.
Voters in any country want their personal voting data to remain private and confidential, especially if you are living in the United States, where voting systems are supposed to be highly advanced and reliable. But unfortunately, voters in the United States are not as lucky lately as they are getting a new surprise almost every week and the situation is only getting worse. From leaking of confidential emails of presidential candidates to exposing of data from key organizations like the Clinton Foundation and the DNC to leaking of millions of voter records Americans have had it all.
Now, the country’s voters are even more scared because of the inherent vulnerabilities of the voter system due to which hackers are easily gaining access and playing with the voter’s data. This election, the voters’ data flow is higher than the rest of the elections in US history, which the authorities find quite overwhelming to handle and that’s what hackers are exploiting.
Also Read: FBI: Arizona, Illinois Voter Registration Systems May Have Been Pwned
In a report from the MacKeeper Security Research Center, it was revealed that database of about 350k voters is publicly available. The sad part is that the database is full of voter records from multiple states, which are denominated as NJ/MT/CA/VA.
MacKeeper is the same security firm which identified that Louisiana’s 2.9million voter records were leaked and it was also revealed that the state was actually involved in selling them.
Here is a brief overview of the number of records from each of the states mentioned above.
“California voter_file = 60,744 records; MT voter_file = 50,000 records; NJ voter_file = 72,114 records; VA voter_file = 62,574 records (with party ID, WardCode, VANID); VA voter_file = 61,995 records; VA voter_file = 46,625 records; Total= 354,052 records.”
The database includes private details of the voters including full name, residential address, contact numbers, gender, date-of-birth, race, marital status, date of voter registration, state voter ID, unique voter ID, political association and if the person has voted in primary elections or not.
Also Read: Voter Registration Systems of over 20 US States Targeted by Hackers
An excerpt of the file discovered by MacKeeper Security is as follows:
Also Read: Hacker Selling Entire US Voters’ Registration Records on DarkNet
It is true that in some states of America, there is little restriction on the way the voter data can be used for commercial or charity but a majority of states specifically use data for elections or politically related activities only. So when the records are leaked online, the consequences could be drastic. The states need to protect and secure their voter records so as to prevent the voters from getting discouraged or the election system becoming tilted.
Currently, there is no particular news about who owns this database or how it was leaked online. Stay tuned.
MacKeeper FreeImages/Kristen Price