Hacker Attack on Latvian State Forests Did Not Affect Election System; New Challenge: Air Raid Alerts
A cyberattack on Latvian State Forests before Midsummer did not impact the election system, CERT.LV confirms. Meanwhile, the Central Election Commission is addressing the possibility of air raid alerts on election day.
Varis Teivāns, deputy head of CERT.LV, stated that an inspection completed on Monday evening provided absolute certainty that the hacker attack on Latvian State Forests (LVM) did not affect the election system. The attack occurred before Midsummer.
Since May, LVM has been responsible for the electronic voter registry. Without it, elections would be severely hindered because 290,000 citizens no longer have passports where a stamp could be placed to mark voting.
There are no concerns about vote counting security, as the Saeima decided in March to count ballots by hand this autumn, and election organizers are prepared.
A new issue is the possibility of air raid alerts on election day. Māris Zviedris, chairman of the Central Election Commission, said consultations are ongoing for legislative changes to ensure polling stations can operate despite drone threats throughout election day.
