It wouldn’t be very hard for a hacker to access U.S. election systems, according to a recent report by the Institute for Critical Infrastructure Technology, titled “Hacking Elections is Easy.” “Every four years, during the presidential election, the same stories re-emerge acknowledging that the e-voting systems are vulnerable to the same old attacks, without any change in the security or oversight of the systems,” James Scott and Drew Spaniel write in the report.

Despite hacks against the Democratic National Committee, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, and the Arizona and Illinois voter databases, many state and industry officials feel confident in the security of elections systems in the upcoming election.

Military and overseas citizens face extra challenges when voting, and the threat of ballot hacking shouldn’t be one of them. Overseas voters have the option of emailing their ballots, which increase the likelihood that they could be hacked.

States across the country are using innovative voting technologies to improve access, shorten wait times, and enable easier reporting of results. Alaska, Arizona, Iowa, California, and Minnesota all have new approaches.

Cloud adopters are stepping on the gas – from police stations and state colleges to our nation’s capital. But how do these agencies and institutions determine the best route? And, which applications do they take along for the ride?

About 10 states have reached out to DHS’s Office of Cybersecurity and Communications to ask questions and provide feedback on its cybersecurity services, according to Neil Jenkins, director of the Enterprise Performance Management Office at DHS. He said there has been an uptick in outreach because of the impending election.

Flint Waters, the chief information officer of Wyoming, is leaving public service on Sept. 23 to join Google in early October. Since 2011, Waters has helped the state transition from state-owned data centers to Google’s cloud services.

The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation will mobilize 911 emergency services at the insistence of the Federal Communications Commission

A Blue Ribbon Panel recently gave 10 scientific recommendations most likely to make progress against cancer in the next five years under the Cancer Moonshot Program. The National Cancer Institute Acting Director Douglas Lowy accepted the recommendations from the panel.

As policing methods come increasingly under fire by the public, cities across the country are looking to digital methods to improve outcomes and bolster public trust. By 2030, the typical North American city will rely heavily on Artificial Intelligence technologies for public safety and security, according to a recent report from Stanford University.