INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Facebook has rolled out a &pilot& program of new security tools for political campaigns — just weeks before millions of Americans go to
the polls for the midterm elections.
The social networking giant said it targeting campaigns that &may be particularly vulnerable to
targeting by hackers and foreign adversaries.
Once enrolled, Facebook said it&ll help campaigns adopt stronger security protections, &like
two-factor authentication and monitor for potential hacking threats,& said Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook head of cybersecurity policy, in a
Monday blog post.
Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg has admitted that the company &didn''t do enough& in the 2016 presidential election to
prevent meddling and spreading misinformation,yet took a lashing from lawmakers for failing to step up in the midterms.
A former Obama
campaign official told TechCrunch that the offering was important — but late.
Fifty days is an eternity in campaign time,& said Harper
Reed, who served as President Obama chief technology officer during the 2012 re-election campaign
&At this point, if [a campaign] has made gross security problems, they&ve already made them.
But he questioned if now equipping campaigns
with security tools will &actually solve the problem, or if it just solves Facebook PR problem.
Facebook — like other tech giants — has
been under the microscope in recent years after the social networking giant failed to prevent foreign meddling in the 2016 presidential
election, in which adversaries — typically Russia — used the platform to spread disinformation.
The company done more to crack down on
foreign interference campaigns after facing rebuke from lawmakers.
But ahead of the midterms, even the company former chief security officer
In an interview at Disrupt SF, Alex Stamos said that critical steps to protect the midterms hadn''t been taken in time.
If there no foreign
interference during the midterms, it not because we did a great job
It because our adversaries decided to [show] a little forbearance, which is unfortunate,& said Stamos.
Facebook, for its part, said its
latest rollout of security tools &might be expanded to future elections and other users& beyond the midterms.
Hacking is a part of
But with just two months to go before voters go to the polls, campaigns &have to just keep doing what they&re doing,& he said.
Facebook,
Twitter: US intelligence could help us more in fighting election interference
