W Terms — Election Security Glossary

An Internet service used to look up information about a domain name or IP address

The legal ability to request an exemption to a rule or regulation.

The voluntary relinquishment or surrender of some known right or privilege. Regulatory agencies of state departments or the federal government may issue waivers to exempt companies from certain regula…

An administrative division of a city or borough that typically elects and is represented by a councilor or councilors.

In New Hampshire, an ELECTION OFFICER. N. H. Rev. Stat. §652:14. Likewise, ME.

An election official charged with enforcing the election law on Election Day. “The presiding officer at a voting place.” Me. Rev. Stat. §21-A-1(50). = MODERATOR. R. I. Gen. Laws §17- 1-2(20).

Attackers searching for wireless networks with vulnerabilities while moving around an area in a moving vehicle

An interactive technique that immerses potential cyber incident responders in a simulated cyber scenario

An environmentally conditioned work space that is partially equipped with information systems and telecommunications equipment to support relocated operations in the event of a significant disruption.

Valid votes which no not ultimately count towards the election of any candidate or party.

A person who observes election procedures to ensure that any irregularity is noticed. “A watcher shall be admitted within all parts of the polling place during the election and the counting and tabula…

A geographical unit of local government given the task of supplying water and sewer needs to a community.

In a watering hole attack, the attacker compromises a site likely to be visited by a particular target group, rather than attacking the target group directly.

An audio file containing a representation of sp eech, used in assistive voting for the visually disabled.

A shortcoming or imperfection in software code, design, architecture, or deployment that, under proper conditions, could become a vulnerability or contribute to the introduction of vulnerabilities.

A term borrowed from military doctrine that refers to the process of analyzing target vulnerabilities and matching them with specific cyber capabilities (weapons) to achieve a desired effect or object…

An attacker creates malware or malicious payloads to use against the target by designing new forms of malware. Modifying existing programs to better match the vulnerabilities they're trying to exploit

To develop an exploit against a vulnerability into an attack tool that can be deployed against a target

Malicious code, invisible to a user, placed on web sites in such a way that it allows third parties to track use of web servers and collect information about the user, including internet protocol (IP)…

A program that prevents access to undesirable Web sites, typically by comparing a requested Web site address to a list of known bad Web sites. (SP 800-69) (NISTIR)

In the context of elections, web portal refers to a gateway available on an election division’s webpage that enables voters to have access to services such as obtaining or downloading a blank ballot a…

Processes for ensuring Web sites are in compliance with applicable policies. (CNSSI-4009) (NISTIR)

A specific kind of phishing that targets high-ranking members of organizations.

Building features that allow for the free movement of individuals using wheelchairs. Accessible doors should provide at least 32 inches of clear width. Door hardware must not require more than 5 lbs. …

A voter who desires to vote wh ile sitting in a wheelchair. A DRE must “accommodate a wheelchair voter without intervention of the poll wo rker other than a minor adjustment such as the angle of the d…

(asymmetric) algorithm, the keying material is encrypted using the public key of the receiver and subsequently decrypted using the private key of the receiver. When used in conjunction with a symmetri…

Team 1. The group responsible for refereeing an engagement between a Red Team of mock attackers and a Blue Team of actual defenders of their enterprise’s use of information systems. In an exercise, th…

The “ballot used at general elections and is the ballot on which are printed the names of the candidates appearing on the presidential ballot a nd those candidates nominated for the offices of United …

Testing based on an analysis of the internal structure of the component or system.

A list of discrete entities, such as hosts or applications that are known to be benign and are approved for use within an organization and/or information system.

A group responsible for refereeing an engagement between a Red Team of mock attackers and a Blue Team of actual defenders of information systems.

A form of testing that is performed with knowledge of a target system's internals

A list of discrete entities, such as hosts, email addresses, network port numbers, runtime processes, or applications that are authorized to be present or active on a system according to a well-define…

U. S. government agencies working across boundaries and through interagency coopera- tion to achieve shared goals and/or an integrated government response.

Concerted and cooperative efforts among partners across agencies and the private sector to facilitate ease of operation and/or reach common goals.

A wireless networking technology that uses radio waves to provide wireless high-speed Internet and network connections. Wi-Fi is a trademarked phrase for the IEEE 802.11x standard.

(WPA2) The approved Wi-Fi Alliance interoperable implementation of the IEEE 802.11i security standard. For federal government use, the implementation must use federal information processing standards …

A novel cybersecurity attack technique that weaponizes legitimate, public-facing Windows Domain Controllers (DCs) to form a powerful, stealthy distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) botnet

A network that connects computers across metropolitan, regional, and national boundaries.

Web applications or similar tools that allow identifiable users to add content (as in an Internet forum) and allow anyone to edit that content collectively. (CNSSI-4009) (NISTIR)

A PRIMARY ELECTION in which all of the state’s convention delegates are allocated to the winner, regardless of the percentage of vote received by other candidates. Cf. PROPORTIONAL PRIMARY.

A security protocol, specified in the IEEE 802.11 standard, that is designed to provide a WLAN with a level of security and privacy comparable to what is usually expected of a wired LAN. WEP is no lon…

Network connectivity using radio waves instead of wire connections. Wireless signals can be intercepted and, if not encrypted, deciphered.

A device that allows wireless devices to connect to a wired network using wi-fi, or related standards.

(WAP) A standard that defines the way in which Internet communications and other advanced services are provided on wireless mobile devices.

A commercial wireless technology that assists designated personnel with the monitoring of specific parts of the radio frequency (RF) spectrum to identify unauthorized wireless transmissions and/or act…

(WLAN) A group of wireless networking devices within a limited geographic area, such as an office building, that exchange data through radio communications.

Technology that permits the transfer of information between separated points without physical connection.

When a person announces a candidacy or files for an election but later decides, by their own choice, not to appear on the final ballot.

When a person files paperwork to be considered for Nomination to public office, but later decides, by their own choice, to not seek the nomination.

Candidates who had announced a candidacy or filed for an election but later decided, by their own choice, not to appear on the final ballot.

An appropriately cleared (if applicable) and designated individual, other than the COMSEC Account Manager, who observes and testifies to the inventory or destruction of COMSEC material.

A “build of executable code including APPLICATION LOGIC, BORDER LOGIC, and THIRD PARTY LOGIC of the voting system” performed by the VSTL witnessed by a representative of the MANUFACTURER. 2007 VVSG.

A component of a voting machine that makes a record of the voter’s interaction with the machine, and from which the voter’s choices can be reconstructed. Sometimes restricted to capture of voter-verif…

Estimate of the effort or time needed by a potential perpetrator, with specified expertise and resources, to overcome a protective measure.

Synonymous with tradecraft identity.

Synonymous with Tradecraft Identity. (CNSSI-4009) (NISTIR)

See voting station.

A self-replicating, self-propagating, self-contained program that uses networking mechanisms to spread itself. See malicious code.

The legal term used when an authorized government authority proclaims that an election will take place at a particular time.

Fundamental operation in an information system that results only in the flow of information from a subject to an object. See Access Type. (CNSSI-4009) (NISTIR)

Permission to write to an object in an information system. (CNSSI-4009) (NISTIR)

A vote for a candidate that was not listed on the ballot. In some jurisdictions, voters may do this by filling in a write-in space provided on a paper ballot, or they may use a keypad, touch screen, o…

Any person seeking election, but whose name will not be printed on the ballot. The candidate must educate voters to write in the candidate's name in the space provided on the ballot.

Any person seeking election, but whose name will not be printed on the ballot. For these votes to be tallied and certified, the candidate must file forms with the election official during the qualifyi…

Any person seeking election, but whose name will not be printed on the ballot, must still complete and file forms with the election official during a qualifying period, in order for these votes to be …

A type of contest option that allows a voter to specify a candidate, usually not already listed as a contest option.

A space provided on a ballot for voters to write in candidate's names that are not pre-printed on the ballot.

A vote for a candidate that was not listed on the ballot. In some jurisdictions, voters may do this by using a marking device to physically write their choice on the ballot or they may use a keypad, t…

To make a selection of an individual not listed on the ballot. In some jurisdictions, voters may do this by using a marking device to physically write their choice on the ballot or they may use a keyp…

A device that allows investigators to examine media while preventing data writes from occurring on the subject media. (SP 800-72) (NISTIR)

A ballot used in voting for a candidate in an election where the voter writes the name of the candidate or the registered political party they wish to vote for in a large blank space on the ballot. Us…

Generally, a board that reviews write-in votes fo r validity and counts them. A board that calls out write-in votes orally so they may be tallied. Tenn. Rules §1360-2-9-.01(d). A “subdivision of the C…

The “space provided, in accordance with a particul ar type of ballot, for marking a write-in vote.” Me. Rev. Stat. §21-A-1(52). Note that the term refers to the blank space rather than the mark made i…

An otherwise proper ballot that was prepared for a different jurisdiction than the one in which it is used by a voter, generally the result of delivering ballots to the wrong polling location. “Said w…