Earlier this week Election Security employees at Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) have been placed on leave. To understand how this is related to the security and integrity of elections in our nation lets take a look at the history of CISA is and how instead of protecting our institutions they instead worked to undermine them.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is a federal agency under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), established in 2018 to enhance the security and resilience of the nation’s critical infrastructure. CISA’s primary responsibilities include protecting against cyber threats, securing federal networks, and coordinating with both public and private sectors to mitigate risks to vital infrastructure, including election systems.
CISA should play a crucial role in securing U.S. elections by working with state and local election officials to defend against cyber threats and election interference. The agency is supposed to provide cybersecurity guidance, threat intelligence, and technical support to election offices, aiming to ensure the integrity and security of the electoral process. Key initiatives include:
- Election Security Infrastructure: Collaborating with state and local governments to enhance the security of voting machines, voter registration databases, and election management systems.
- Misinformation and Disinformation Efforts: Partnering with social media platforms and other stakeholders to identify and counter false or misleading election-related information.
- Threat Monitoring: Conducting risk assessments and providing recommendations to help election officials safeguard against potential cyberattacks.
At their core, these activities are useful and helpful for maintaining election security, however the organization strayed from its core duties and engaged in more sinister activities.
CISA was caught in a scandal creating criticism and legal challenges over its efforts to combat what it deemed “misinformation”. Particularly concerning was the fact the agency coordinated with social media companies to suppress certain viewpoints. These actions were direct government-led censorship in violation of the First Amendment, which as we all know protects freedom of speech from government interference.
The controversy gained significant attention following lawsuits and congressional investigations that discovered CISA worked with tech companies to flag and remove content deemed misleading or false, particularly during the 2020 election and the COVID-19 pandemic. While combating misinformation or trying to set the record straight is important and sometimes necessary, CISA’s involvement in content moderation and pressuring private platforms to take down posts crosses a constitutional line by directly restricting free speech.
Several lawsuits have challenged CISA’s role in combating misinformation, with courts weighing whether the agency’s actions constitute government overreach. If the court determines that CISA’s coordination with tech companies amounted to censorship, it could set a precedent limiting the federal government’s involvement in content moderation.
CISA has potential to play a vital role in protecting U.S. election security, but its involvement in the suppression of free speech only hurt the trust in the institutions that are supposed to serve the will of the people. Moving forward, it is unknown if this agency will continue to operate, but cyber-attacks are a real threat to elections, and CISA should focus on combatting real attacks on critical infrastructure, rather than policing and suppressing the speech of Americans expressing concern about our elections.