2024 US Presidential Election Cyber Intrusion: Part 5

Uploaded on 2024-10-31 in GOVERNMENT-National, FREE TO VIEW

Part 5 of a series that will analyze critical cyber security aspects during the countdown to the 2024 US Presidential Election, beginning with Nation State Threat Actors, then Covert Influence Operations, Hactivism and Cybercrime.

Do Organized Cybercrime Groups Have The Ability To Compromise the 2024 US Presidential Election?

Although it is unlikely that financially motivated cybercriminals would have a specific interest in the 2024 US presidential election itself, ransomware, and related extortion efforts, target victims for their potential to pay a ransom.

Ransomware

With a substantial quantity of sensitive data surrounding the election available for compromise, we have assessed that this will increase the likelihood for the election to be targeted by a cybercrime event. Ransomware efforts will provide cybercriminals with a low-cost, high-reward attack vector that could be leveraged to both gain access to the network of US election offices, as well as actively disrupting the election proceedings by encrypting data.

Phishing

Cybercriminals will likely capitalise on the run-up to November 5th by engaging in malicious social engineering attempts involving the delivery of US presidential election-themed phishing emails, SMS, and social media messages to prey on the US public’s uncertainty surrounding the election. They will try to entice them to interact with malicious links that will likely be disguised by URLs purporting to divert victims to seemingly legitimate election information and voter registration web pages.

Stealware

Cybercrime targeting of the election will also likely extend to involve the deployment of stealware variants.

This assessment has been made based on a recent trend of threat actors leveraging stealware with attempts to steal voter registration records and credentials from election systems with the actors also leaking these data sets.

These infostealer campaigns have obtained this data by intercepting login forms on Internet browsers or by accessing password storage on compromised devices. Stealware actors likely leak this data to undermine the trust in US election systems and create the perception that they are vulnerable and untrustworthy.

TO BE CONCLUDED

Craig Watt is a Threat Intelligence Consultant at Quorum Cyber specializing in strategic and geopolitical intelligence.

Image: Andrii Shyp

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