Cybersecurity Information

The National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) is promotes #TrustedInfo. This initiative is focused on driving voters directly to election officials’ websites and verified social media pages to ensure voters are getting accurate election information.

The growing threat of cybercrime has been on the minds of many voters. Recently, there have been many questions about the security of the voter data under the care of the election authorities. Here, at the McLean County Clerk’s office, we are committed to cybersecurity, as well as the physical security, of the data in our care.

The ExpressVote voting machines and the ballot box used to count your ballots use state-of-the-art technology to protect your votes. Neither machine is connected to the Internet which means they cannot be remotely accessed or hacked by a bad actor.

ExpressVote machines and DS200 Tabulators (the "black box" used to process and count ballots) used during early voting and in polling places ensure security by using physical and system access controls, a verifiable paper record, detailed audit logs, proprietary hardware, and system application controls. Data generated during an election is encrypted and digitally signed and features hash validations to ensure data integrity.

The DS450 High-Thoughput Scanner and Tabulator is used in the election office to process and count vote by mail ballots. It features the same security controls as the DS200 Tabulator used in polling places.

Election Systems and Software (ES&S), our election equipment vendor, follows strict security guidelines in the design and build of its systems, in the proprietary software that runs on the machines, and in its supply chain placing the equipment under security scrutiny from machine build until it's in our hands. For more information about ES&S security, visit their security web page.

The County Clerk’s office and the McLean County IT department are working together with State and Federal entities, such as the Department of Homeland Security, to maintain the integrity of elections and voter information. We have also designated a competent staff member to oversee our cybersecurity. Through continuing education about cybersecurity, we are striving to make certain future elections and voter data remain safe from cyber threats.

Co-Director of Elections,

Bradley Beyer