Experts warn of cybersecurity risks in 2024 election campaign

Political campaigns need to prioritize cybersecurity ahead of this fall's election, a panel of experts warned at a recent summit at Google in Fulton Market.

Why it matters: With the rise of AI, deep fakes and more, this election cycle may be more vulnerable to cyberthreats than any previously, non-partisan, non-aligned Defending Digital Campaigns coalition president Michael Kaiser tells Axios.

Driving the news: Just this week X owner Elon Musk was accused of spreading a fake video of Vice President Kamala Harris supposedly deriding President Biden.

• Several fake Harris fundraising emails were sent after she became the presumptive nominee .
• This follows fake direct mailers and a deep fake robocall impersonating Biden's voice before the New Hampshire primary this year.

Context: DDC, a nonprofit that offers free or low-cost digital security tools to campaigns, partnered with Google to host the Chicago summit this month to bring together politicians, campaign operatives, cybersecurity professionals and software and hardware experts.

• The group is funded primarily by Google and Microsoft.

By the numbers: 42% of political donors would consider not donating to a campaign if it was hacked, and 30% might vote for different candidates, one DDC survey of 2,000 registered voters found.

What they're saying: "In this critical election year, trust in the digital integrity of political campaigns both nationwide and at the state level is more important than ever," Kaiser said in a statement.

Takeaways: The experts at the summit presented some key advice to campaigns, consumers and government:

• Campaigns should offer basic cybersecurity training to all staffers and require multifactor authentication to access their computer systems.
• Voters should scrutinize campaign messaging and donate only through a candidate's verified website.
• The federal government should adopt national rules on AI rather than relying on a state-by-state patchwork of security rules.

What's next: The Federal Election Commission granted DDC permission to work with federal party committees and many U.S. House, Senate and presidential campaigns, but the organization is still seeking approval from state election officials to provide free cybersecurity tools for down-ballot races.