MEDIA ADVISORY: Washington Election Cybersecurity Workshop Tuesday
On Tuesday, June. 23, 2020, the USC Election Cybersecurity Initiative will host a free online Washington workshop, offering resources to campaigns, election workers, elected officials, academics, media and concerned citizens to reinforce election cybersecurity measures.
Contact: Tiffany Shackelford (703)470-2996 or tshackel@usc.edu; Emily Gersema, (213) 740-6973 or gersema@usc.edu; or Ted Kissell, (714) 316-8808 or tkissell@usc.edu
Experts on Tuesday afternoon will lead discussions on election cybersecurity with state and local officials and campaign representatives to help improve election cybersecurity in Washington. Topics will include cyber safety, disinformation and misinformation, and crisis communications.
The USC Election Cybersecurity Initiative, supported by a generous gift from Google, is an independent, bipartisan effort to strengthen election cybersecurity through workshops held for each of the 50 states.
“We are going to all 50 states, in person when possible or virtually when we cannot, to make certain information about best practices is available to everyone, but especially for those in campaigns and elections,” said Adam Clayton Powell III, executive director of the project. “We are a national campaign, and our candidate is democracy.”
The initiative kicked off in January in Maryland, drawing experts in national security, elected officials, as well as journalists and concerned members of the public. It continued to Ohio, California, Kentucky, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arkansas, Virginia, Louisiana, Wyoming, Iowa, South Carolina, Delaware, Montana, Utah, Missouri, Alabama, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Oklahoma Connecticut, Kansas, Idaho, Vermont, North Dakota, Nebraska and now Washington.
“In advance of the 2020 election, we are committed to enhancing election security for voters, campaigns and journalists alike,” said Kristie Canegallo, vice president of Google’s Trust and Safety team. “We’re proud to support USC’s Election Security and Information Project to provide comprehensive training to candidates, campaigns, academics, elected officials, and NGOs to help them prepare for security challenges before the 2020 election.”
“We’re bringing together experts on an issue that are becoming more relevant by the second, leading up to the 2020 election,” said Justin Griffin, the initiative’s managing Director. “From elected officials like Washington Secretary of State, Kim Wyman, to political operatives and private sector experts, our guests are providing on the ground perspectives and best practices related to election and cybersecurity in the state of Washington.”
WHAT: USC Election Cybersecurity Initiative. The topics covered include cyber safety, disinformation and misinformation, and crisis communication.
WHO: Experts speaking include:
- Kim Wyman, Washington Secretary of State
- Ginny Badanes, Director of Strategic Projects, Cybersecurity & Democracy, Microsoft
- Dusti Demarest, Executive Editor, The Olympian
- Michael Grass, Communications Manager, Center for an Informed Public, Information School, University of Washington
- Brandt McCool, Chief Technology Officer, New Blue Interactive
- James Stanger, Chief Technology Evangelist, CompTIA
- Mike Stall, Voter Science
- Clifford Neuman, Director, USC Center for Computer Systems Security; Senior Project Leader, USC Information Sciences Institute; and Associate Research Professor of Computer Science, USC Viterbi School of Engineering
- Tom Lange, Advisory Board Member, USC Annenberg Center for Public Relations
- Sarah Mojarad, MS, Lecturer, USC Viterbi School of Engineering
- Adam Clayton Powell III, Executive Director, USC Election Cybersecurity Initiative, and former USC Vice Provost
- Justin Griffin, Managing Director, USC Election Cybersecurity Initiative, and veteran of corporate reputation and political campaigns
WHERE: Zoom Event. You will receive credentials upon registration.
WHEN: Tuesday, June 23, 2020 1:30 – 3:30 PM Pacific Time
REGISTRATION: To attend, register here: https://bit.ly/3cuOqWW
MORE INFORMATION: The initiative is led by the USC Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership and Policy, established by University Professor Geoffrey Cowan, who is the principal investigator for the USC Elections Cybersecurity Initiative. For more background on CCLP, please visit its website.