Foreign Actors Seek To Undermine Election Confidence: Officials

DENVER, CO — The Colorado Secretary of State's Office is ramping up the fight against foreign entities that are trying to undermine the Nov. 3 election, officials announced Tuesday.

Coloradans have voted by mail for 6 years, so the state's top elections official is in a good position to lead the charge against what she calls "foreign misinformation."

“Colorado is considered the safest state in which to cast a ballot, and we continually innovate to maintain our leading cyber preparedness," Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold said.

"Foreign adversaries are conducting influence operations to try to undermine Americans’ confidence in the electoral process, and states must act.”

Griswold's office has launched social media campaigns and a new website to combat misinformation. The office has also launched the Rapid Response Election Security Cyber Unit to help combat emerging cyber threats, officials said.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security agency issued warnings in September about foreign actors that spread misinformation on fake websites, alter existing legitimate websites, send fraudulent emails and release articles in fake online journals.

Don’t miss the latest election news updates in Colorado. Sign up for free Patch news alerts and newsletters for what you need to know daily.

"Academic studies and our allies’ experiences indicate that mitigating foreign misinformation and disinformation requires ensuring citizens are aware of the threat, think critically about what they see on social media, and know where to find reliable information," the Colorado Secretary of State's office said in a statement.

"The expanded initiative to combat misinformation will help Coloradans understand that when it comes to registering, voting, and election results, 'opinions are fun, but facts are better,' inspiring voters to seek reliable electoral process information from trusted sources."

The office is working with the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to implement any additional election security measures that are needed, officials said.