Colorado Secretary Of State Launches Election Protocol Investigation Into Douglas County Clerk
DENVER (CBS4) - Colorado's Secretary of State Jena Griswold is launching an investigation into a third possible election protocol breach, this time into Douglas County Clerk Merlin Klotz.
The investigation is aimed at the disclosure of relevant information from Clerk Klotz.
"My office became aware of a potential unauthorized imaging of a Douglas County voting equipment server," Secretary Griswold said in a statement. "The Douglas County Clerk has failed to respond to an email request requiring disclosure of information about this potential breach in election security protocol. To ensure the security of Douglas County's voting equipment, I am issuing an Election Order requiring the Douglas Clerk to disclose information regarding the imaging of the election equipment server. As Secretary of State, I will continue to protect Colorado's election infrastructure to ensure that every eligible Coloradan – Republican, Democrat, and Independent, alike – has access to secure elections."
The Secretary of State's office was made aware of the potential breach on January 28th, when a social media post attributed to Clerk Klotz came to light. That post asserted Clerk Klotz stated "a full image backup of our server before a trusted build was done this year." On that date, Secretary Griswold's office sent Clerk Klotz and email asking for more information regarding the alleged breach, with an answer due on January 31st.
The answer never arrived.
On Thursday, Secretary Griswold sent an order to Clerk Klotz requiring the information sought, activation of video surveillance equipment, and that no one access election equipment unaccompanied.
The alleged breach reportedly happened before the trusted build of the Douglas County 2021 voting equipment, which protects the system against potential vulnerabilities. At this time, the Secretary of State's office does not believe there is a direct risk to the security of state elections.
