Information Technology Laboratory

Voting

The 2002 Help America Vote Act has given NIST a key role in helping to realize nationwide improvements in voting systems. To assist the Election Assistance Commission with the development of voluntary voting system guidelines, HAVA established the Technical Guidelines Development Committee (TGDC) and directs NIST to chair the TGDC.

NIST and the Help America Vote Act (HAVA)


NIST research activities include:

  • security of computers, computer networks, and computer data storage used in voting systems;
  • methods to detect and prevent fraud;
  • protection of voter privacy; and
  • the role of human factors in the design and application of voting systems, including assistive technologies for individuals with disabilities (including blindness) and varying levels of literacy
  • the recommendation for accreditation of testing labs to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC). The EAC, not NIST, certifies voting systems for use in elections.

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Industry Impacts

Test Bed

NIST Impacts: Industrial Control Systems Cybersecurity

Despite the threats of cyberattack on computer-controlled industrial systems, utilities and other users of these systems can be hesitant to adopt common security technologies out of concern for their impact on system performance. NIST developed a guide to help industry understand and implement cybersecurity approaches to protect them from these threats.

encryption illustration

NIST Impacts: Online Security

Mobile computing, e-commerce and the proliferation of connected devices bring unprecedented benefits to our lives. But to protect individuals, businesses and the government from the risks they bring, we need strong encryption. NIST provides trusted tools and guidance to increase the use of encryption. 

Computer scientist Murugiah Souppaya investigates security techniques for protecting virtuallized computing environments and cloud computing systems.

NIST Impacts: Cybersecurity

Cyber attacks cost businesses an estimated $400B per year globally from direct damage and post-attack operation disruption. To give companies a way to evaluate and address their cyber risks in this quickly evolving technology age, NIST developed the Cybersecurity Framework.

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TEST ASSERTIONS

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Voting Staff