To prøvehacke the IT systems before the parliamentary election – VG

Security is in the additional years high on the agenda in Valgdirektoratet. The IT systems shall prøvehackes and gjennomtestes before parliamentary elections.

It is not uncovered specific threats to our field of work, but we have a higher focus on security because of the threat level, ” says Bjorn Berg, director of Valgdirektoratet, to VG.

PST reported in the last week about the growing concern for Russian intelligence in Norway and the commander of the E-service, said this week that Russia will create inner discord and unrest in Europe.

– With the intensified threat assessment, we are more focused we also. It is completely natural. We have the same safeguards, and technical for those who are involved, but we must also keep in mind that there is an increased and upgraded in threat perceptions, ” says Berg.

ENSURES the IT SYSTEMS: Bjorn Berg, director of Valgdirektoratet, says they go through IT-systems as before, but that they are sharpened because of the Pst’s new threat assessment.

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- We are well equipped

– How well is the Norwegian electoral system, secured against Russian or chinese influence?

We do all of the things we have knowledge of that can be done, with good support from the best research environments in Norway. We believe that we are well positioned, but we must be aware that if these trusselaktørene will, have the amazing capacity. But there are no identified threats to our work as of today, he stresses.

They have not, so far as to him known, registered any attacks against the Norwegian electoral system in the past. But the IT systems should be tested thoroughly.

With the situation that is in the world around us, is our focus and the needs of the session on security and emergency preparedness in general, and it affects the precautions we take before the election this fall, says valgdirektøren. the

– It’s about protecting the IT systems we use in valggjennomføringen. Our task is to ensure the computer systems and that those who are involved in valgarbeidet to do the job right, ” he says, and points out that as many as 30 000 valgmedarbeidere is in turn when Norway shall implement the options.

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Should prøvehacke the Norwegian choice

Before the parliamentary elections in autumn will be Nasjonal sikkerhetsmyndighet (NSM) try to hack it, as they have done in the past.

After you deliver your voice in an urn, it is either scanned or counted manually, also sent the results to the Valgdirektoratet central. It is this last transmission, which in particular should be protected against hacker attacks.

They are trying to test out our systems in full scale, but it is not something new, and it has been made at the previous choice, too, ” says Berg.

PST-chief Benedicte Bjørnland said during last week’s threat assessment that she is not so that Russia “does not have something special to serve to influence the parliamentary elections”.

– It is the message we get from them also, but we must be prepared for it, and do what we can to hedge against it, ” says director Berg Valgdirektoratet.

the very next week starts the training of the county municipalities, then the municipalities.

– Then we have exercises, prøvevalg and do several things to see that we do not get any surprises when we go into the election itself. Pst’s threat assessments, we get continuously until the election, also we get feedback on the work of the NSM do for us, ” says Berg at VG.

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