Numerous disinformation threats have emerged in the lead-up to Tuesday's debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, SC Media reports.
Checkmarx reported that major polling firm Gallup was impacted by already-addressed critical cross-site scripting flaws that could have been leveraged to compromise user data and spread false information.
The White House also warned of potential anti-immigrant violence following the false claims about Haitian immigrants made by Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance. On the other hand, misleading posts made by Trump-aligned Elon Musk on his X (formerly Twitter) account regarding voters registration of millions of nonresidents in certain states have spurred concern among local election officials, according to the Washington Post.
While SentinelOne Chief Security Advisor Morgan Wright noted that there has been no evidence suggesting the compromise of polls due to the Gallup XSS vulnerabilities, their discovery could undermine trust in systems.
Such threats also emphasize the importance of securing election processes through collaboration and more robust cybersecurity measures, said Qualys Cyber Threat Director Ken Dunham.
"It's a collective effort that requires dedication from governments, private sector partnerships, and the public. The security of our elections is not just an operational task but a fundamental pillar of our democracy," Dunham added.
