Kentucky and New Mexico to Use Technology to Authenticate Candidate Websites

On Tuesday, Kentucky Secretary of State Trey Grayson announced a new effort to protect voters from fraudulent websites in anticipation of the largest election in Kentucky history with more than 4,000 races on the ballot.

Grayson was joined by New Mexico Secretary of State Rebecca Vigil-Giron. Kentucky and New Mexico will be the first states in the country to address fraudulent candidate websites.

The new service will be available, free-of-charge, to all candidates who file with the Office of the Secretary of State. The service utilizes technology developed by ElectionMall Technologies, Inc. The Election Security Seal Program provides an online environment in which viewers are assured they are dealing with the legitimate websites of candidates.

What it is:

• The "Election Security Seal Program" is a program designed to verify the authenticity of political websites and protect political candidates, officials, groups and consumers against scams and false information associated with fraudulent political Web sites, through the use of an encrypted digital seal.
  
  
• The program creates an official online "Registrar Directory" of legitimate political websites, including candidate sites, campaign sites, 527's, political action group sites and other political organization sites. This registrar may then be used by the public to verify the authenticity of political websites.

How it works:

• The political candidate, official or group registers through his or her appropriate Secretary of State. In the registration form, the candidate is asked if he/she would like to have the SOS seal appear on his/her candidate website to certify and authenticate the site.
  
  
• The SOS office verifies the identity of the candidate/authenticity of the site.
  
  
• The candidate is listed in the official Registrar Directory.
  
  
• If the approved candidate/official wishes to add the SOS seal to their website, it will appear at the bottom of the site.
  
  
• When a visitor clicks on the seal, it will redirect them to a site for official authentication.
  
  
• The seal will have a scroll-over capability that will allow the visitor to see the certification.

"Protecting the integrity of Kentucky's elections is the highest priority for the Office of the Secretary of State and for the hundreds of local elections officials throughout the Commonwealth," stated Secretary Grayson. "In the last few elections, political websites and online fundraising have proliferated, and so have concerns about fraudulent activity connected to such sites. Election administrators must protect citizens from fraudulent political websites, or we may run the risk of alienating potential voters."

During the 2004 elections, 75 million Americans used the Internet to obtain political news and information, making the Internet and online campaigning a top focus and communications medium for politicians and political groups.

"Without question, the Internet is a major communications vehicle for candidates and voters. The Commonwealth's citizens deserve to have confidence that a Kentucky candidate's site is authentic," continued Grayson.

Secretary Grayson, the youngest Secretary of State in the country and current chairman of the National Association of Secretaries of State's Election's Committee, as well as the national chairman of the Republican Association of Secretaries of State, has encouraged other states to follow Kentucky's lead in this effort.