Malicious Online Activities Related to the 2012 U.S. General Election

Presented at ShmooCon X (2014), Jan. 19, 2014, 10 a.m. (60 minutes)

This presentation looks back at the number of ways that the 2012 Presidential election was bought, sold, and manipulated through malicious online activities. We identify activities that could be classified as manipulative, mischievous, or downright illegal, such as fake campaign donation sites, political spam, attempts to sell ballots, privacy violations, and rogue Super PACs. For each of these activities we provide examples of sources that demonstrate their online presence during the 2012 election and include additional information. We also include examples of malicious election activity in recent elections. Finally, we attempt to examine and discuss the motivations and methods behind these malicious activities.


Presenters:

  • Dr. Damon McCoy
    Joshua, Robert, and Matthew are working towards, or have obtained, a Masters in Information Security and Assurance from George Mason University. Joshua is currently working in both mobile and election security. Matthew is currently focused on mobile and wireless security research and development. All three work in the DC metro area.
  • Matthew Jablonski
    Joshua, Robert, and Matthew are working towards, or have obtained, a Masters in Information Security and Assurance from George Mason University. Joshua is currently working in both mobile and election security. Matthew is currently focused on mobile and wireless security research and development. All three work in the DC metro area.
  • Robert Tarlecki
    Joshua, Robert, and Matthew are working towards, or have obtained, a Masters in Information Security and Assurance from George Mason University. Joshua is currently working in both mobile and election security. Matthew is currently focused on mobile and wireless security research and development. All three work in the DC metro area.
  • Joshua Franklin
    Joshua, Robert, and Matthew are working towards, or have obtained, a Masters in Information Security and Assurance from George Mason University. Joshua is currently working in both mobile and election security. Matthew is currently focused on mobile and wireless security research and development. All three work in the DC metro area.

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