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PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 14, 2018
Contact: Carla N. Wyckoff
847.377.2430
Lake County Clerk Carla N. Wyckoff today said she is gratified by the U.S. Department of Justice actions, announced on July 13, 2018, that include indictments of individuals accused of the July 2016 hacking into the Illinois State Board of Elections (SBOE) electronic voter registration data base. At the same time, Wyckoff expressed assurances that the Lake County Clerk’s Office (LCCO) voter registration data base and 2016 General Election results were unaffected by the incident that occurred at the state level.
Although each of the state’s election authorities is required by state law to export each individual’s voter registration record to the SBOE, Lake County relies on its own data base which is not connected to the SBOE’s system. Further, the recording and tabulation of votes is conducted on a distinctly separate system with no connection to either the SBOE or the LCCO voter registration data base. Lake County’s optical scan vote tabulation system includes secure original paper ballots and results tape which comprise a strong paper trail of accurate results.
At the time of the 2016 hacking incident, the SBOE stopped the intrusion; immediately shut down its system; and implemented enhanced security before resuming activity. The LCCO was notified along with all other Illinois election authorities and mirrored the additional protection measures. The LCCO office was informed that about 75,000 voter registration records had likely been viewed and that approximately 100 of those involved Lake County residents. Each individual affected voter was notified in writing about this incident and advised to contact authorities with any suspicious activity related to his/her voter registration. The SBOE website has a tool for individuals to determine if his/her record was affected.
Wyckoff reaffirmed that cyber and physical security of Lake County’s elections remain high priorities.The LCCO is working with the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the Illinois State Police as well as appropriate Information Technology experts to continue to protect the integrity of the election process. “We consider this a serious issue and are committed to incorporating strong measures to defend against intrusion; to detect if there has been a breach and to recover with the election results intact.”
For more information on Lake County Clerk services and up-to-the-minute election news, visit LakeCountyClerk.info, follow us at twitter.com/LakeCountyClerk, join our page at facebook.com/CountyClerk, or call 847.377.2400.
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