CTCL Partners with U.S. Election Assistance Commission to Deliver Cybersecurity Training Nationwide
On June 22, 2020, the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) announced the immediate availability of CTCL’s self-paced, cybersecurity training specific to election officials at no cost to all State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial election offices.
“The orientation and training of our election workers on ways to combat cybersecurity threats is the backbone of our defenses against overseas or domestic bad actors. This partnership with the Center for Tech and Civic Life allows us to offer quality training and resources in direct support of local election officials and their critical mission,” said EAC Vice Chair Donald Palmer.
The Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL) is a civic tech nonprofit that connects Americans with the information they need to become and remain civically engaged, and helps ensure elections are professional, inclusive, and secure. With this in mind, CTCL supports election departments with industry best practices, free tech tools, and professional development courses.
One of CTCL’s core programs is delivering online training courses to election officials on a range of topics that meet the most pressing needs facing the field of election administration. So in response to election cyber incidents in 2016, CTCL partnered with the Center for Democracy and Technology to develop election cybersecurity training.
The 3-course election cybersecurity curriculum is tailored to local U.S. election offices, especially those with limited tech resources. The series empowers election offices to manage cyber threats and communicate with the public about cybersecurity. Since 2018 over 1,000 election officials across the country have completed the training.
Whitney May, CTCL’s Director of Government Services says, “We know that every community depends on their local election office to lead a voting process that is trustworthy and inclusive. That’s why our north star is to reach all election departments in the country. The partnership with the Election Assistance Commission is a tremendous boost to expanding the reach and impact of our training program.”
This election-focused cybersecurity training is available immediately through the EAC website. The courses are available at no cost through May 2021.