Illinois’ voter registration system is back online about two weeks after it was shut down in the wake of a cyberattack. Ken Menzel, general counsel for the Illinois State Board of Elections, said Friday that the board’s focus has been on securing the voter database before bringing it back online. The board will continue investigating the attack to determine how many voters’ information may have been accessed. The attack, which the board told local election authorities it believes was the work of foreign hackers, occurred July 12, and the online registration system was taken down the following day as a precaution. It was brought back online late Thursday afternoon.
The board previously said its voter database is a frequent target of hackers, but this is the first time anyone has succeeded in accessing it. Officials are confident no voter information was altered.
Cybersecurity experts say government databases are increasingly common targets for those looking to steal personal information.