U Terms — Election Security Glossary

Election Assistance Commission was created by the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) to assist the states regarding HAVA compliance and to distribute HAVA funds to the states. The EAC is also charged with c…

(USGCB) The United States Government Configuration Baseline (USGCB) provides security configuration baselines for Information Technology products widely deployed across the federal agencies.

U. S. person means a person (as defined in 22 CFR 120.14) who is a lawful permanent resident as defined by 8 U. S. C. 1101(a) (20) or who is a protected individual as defined by 8 U. S. C. 1324b(a) (3…

Base or building to which access is physically controlled by U. S. individuals who are authorized U. S. government or U. S. government contractor employees. (CNSSI-4009) (NISTIR)

A space (e.g., room or floor) within a facility other than a U. S.-controlled facility, access to which is physically controlled by U. S. citizens or resident aliens who are authorized U. S. Governmen…

See User Datagram Protocol

U. K. Government, National Cyber Security Strategy 2016-2021, Nov. 1, 2016

Creating virtual representations of servers, storage, networks, and other physical machines

An additional seat in a legislature which results in an MMP system when a party or grouping wins more seats in a region under the first, usually plurality/majority, electoral system than the number to…

An ABSENTEE BALLOT that is that is not processed beyond the step of signature verification.

A registered voter who is not AFFILIATED with a political party.” Col. Stat. §1-1-104(49.5).

Any “individual who files a declaration as a ca ndidate for any office to be decided at the GENERAL ELECTION and who is not affiliated with any political party and has not been thus AFFILIATED for at …

A facility is unattended when there is no human presence. Use of roaming guards and/or an intrusion detection system is not enough to consider a facility attended. Having a trusted individual sitting …

Any access that violates the stated security policy.

An event involving the exposure of information to entities not authorized access to the information.

Use of technology or data for unapproved or illegal activities.

Parameter, associated with the result of a measurement that characterizes the dispersion of the values that could reasonably be attributed to that which is being measures.

Information that does not require safeguarding or dissemination contro ls pursuant to Executive Order (E. O.) 13556 (Controlled Unclassified Information) and h as not been determined to require protec…

The property of a voting method that prevents a person from influencing the vote of another.

Not in accordance with a political constitution, especially the U. S. Constitution, or with procedural rules.

An “office where, as of the final date for filing primary nomination petitions, either: A. Only members of one party have filed as candidates fo r nomination for that office; or B. Only one unenrolled…

A ballot that was validly cast by an eligible voter but whose contents were not counted in determining the final tally.

A “voter who is registered as a member of no political party.” N. H. Rev. Stat. Ann. §652:16-a.

Having sworn to tell the truth.

Occurs when the number of choices selected by a voter in a contest is less than the maximum number allowed for that contest or when no selection is made for a single choice contest.

The act of a voter selecting less than the maximum number allowed for a voting contest or when no selection is made for a single choice contest.

Key that has not been encrypted in a system approved by the National Security Agency (NSA) for key encryption or encrypted key in the presence of its ass ociated key encryption key (KEK) or transfer k…

An individual who is not affiliated with a political party.

A candidate for public office who is not affiliated with a political party.

The number of calendar days left between a vacancy of a public office and the date that the term is regularly scheduled to end. Unexpired terms may be filled through an appointment or special election…

“Card stock tinted for use in California elections, cut to the width and approximate length of a single ballot card, and requiring one or more step s in the production of a ballot card.” Cal. Regs. §2…

A voting system adopted in every jurisdiction in a state. Uniform systems exist in Alaska, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Oklahoma and Rhode Island. See, e.g., Md. Elec. Code §9-101: “The voting…

For UOCAVA purposes, “‘uniformed services’ means the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard, the commissioned corps of the Public Health Service, and the commissioned corps of the Nation…

U. S. citizens who are active members of the Uniformed Services, the Merchant Marine, and the commissioned corps of the Public Health Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, t…

UOCAVA citizens are U. S. citizens who are active members of the Uniformed Services, the Merchant Marine, and the commissioned corps of the Public Health Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospher…

(b) Duplicate the card without punching the location of the incompletely punched chip if: (1) The chip does not have at least one corner that is detached from the card; and (2) The fibers of paper on …

A battery powered back-up system that quickly switches to battery power when electrical current to the computer system is disrupted (surge, sags, and failures).

A source of power to voting equipment that is not interrupted should regular electric power be lost. The backup power is generally supplied th rough batteries but may also come from a fuel- operated g…

1. A code placed on a ballot for i nventory and audit purposes. In most states, the identifier is

“Prior to delivering any ballot to the voter, the board worker should place a unique mark in the box printed at the bottom of the ballot. A unique mark shall be of such a manner so as not to identify …

An individual with a legal status that provides them with certain rights within the United States. Citizenship may be derived from place of birth, paternal citizenship, or naturalization.

UNITED STATES Conference OF MAYORS

UNITED STATES Conference ON CIVIL RIGHTS

A particular type of contest in Flor ida, in which all voters may vote in a PRIMARY for a candidate who will be unopposed in the GENERAL ELECTION, regardless of their party of registration. Such votin…

The ability of any citizen, following an election, to determine for himself that the announced totals are correct and that only eligible voters voted.

COMSEC equipment containing no key or containing key that has been protected from unauthorized use by removing the cryptographic ignition key (CI K) or deactivating the personal identification number …

“Unlawful opening of a ballot box consists of opening a ballot box or inspecting or removing the contents thereof without lawful authority, or conspiring with others so to open a ballot box.” Wyo. Sta…

“Unlawful opening of a voting machine consis ts of opening, unlocking, inspecting, tampering with, resetting or adjusting a voting machine w ithout lawful authority, or conspiring with others to do so…

In some states, it is a CRIME for an ELECTION OFFICIAL to possess alcoholic beverages. “Unlawful possession of alcoholic or malt beverages at a polling place consists of the use or possession of any a…

“Unlawful possession of a key consists of the possession at any time of a key to a voting machine or ballot box, or making a duplicate thereo f, unless authorized by law.” Wyo. Stat. §22-26-105.

An issued ballot without any selections made.

A substitute for an OFFICIAL BALLOT, used in the event official ballots are unavailable. “If from any cause neither the official ballot nor ballo ts otherwise prepared as herein prescribed shall be re…

A PROVISIONAL BALLOT cast by a voter who subsequently is found not to have been eligible to vote. N. M. Admin. Code §1.10.22.9(B). Such ballots must be retained for 22 months pursuant to 42 U. S. C. §…

A “ballot that cannot be read by the vote ta llying system as the voter intended without alteration. Unreadable ballots may include, but not be limited to, ballots with damage, write-in votes, incorre…

Not having entered one's name on an official voting list.

A potentially dangerous condition that may ar ise when multiple processes are executing concurrently, including “race conditions, deadlo cks, livelocks, and resource starvation. 2007 VVSG.

Data included in an authentication token, in addition to a digital signature. (FIPS 196) (NISTIR)

A BALLOT “which is not endorsed by the official stamp” of an election official. Such ballots are “void and may not be counted.” S. D. Rules §5:02:16:10.

Process that has not been evaluated or examined for correctness and adh erence to the security policy. It may include incorrect or malicious code that attempts to cir cumvent the security mechanisms.

A “ballot never stamped or marked by a voter.” S. D. Rules §5:02:16:00(3).

1. = BLANK BALLOT. Also UNUSED BALLOT. 2. A “ballot never placed in the ballot box.” S. D. Rules §5:02:16:00(2).

Uniformed AND Overseas Citizens Absentee VOTING ACT

An overseas voter or an active duty member of the U. S. military, either within or outside the United States, including any accompanying spouse and family members who are eligible to vote in their las…

Transfer data from a smaller computer or device to a larger computer. At the close of polls, memory cards with cast ballot information are uploaded to the central tabulation computer.

(a key) Automatic or manual cryptographic process that irreversibly modifies the state of a COMSEC key, equipment, device, or system.

Transfer data from a smaller computer or device to a larger computer.

One of the two chambers in a bicameral legislature, often seen either as containing `the representatives of regions/federal states’ or as `a chamber of review’. The less powerful chamber when the powe…

To provide someone, such as an employee, with more advanced skills through additional education and training

(ES&S, opscan) A component of certain models of ES&S optical scanners used to adjust the guide arm that holds ballots in place as the input hopper rises while ballots are being read.

(United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team) A partnership between the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the public and private sectors, established to protect the nation's internet infra…

Effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction with which a specified set of users can achieve a specified set of tasks in a particular environment. Usability in the context of voting refers to voters bei…

An objective, performance-based measure of the USABILITY of a voting system. The 2007 VVSG define five such benchmarks. See AVERAGE VOTER CONFID ENCE, AVERAGE VOTING SESSION TIME, PERFECT BALLOT INDEX…

Encompasses a range of methods that examine how users in the target audience actually interact with a system, in contrast to analytic techniques such as usability inspection.

A naive person who is persuaded by a group (usually through deception) to further its political agenda without fully comprehending the goal or its ramifications

ID Unique symbol or character string used by an information system to identify a specific user.

The technical capability to observe and record the actions and activities of an individual, at any time, on any device accessing U. S. Government information in order to detect insider threat and to s…

See Voting Equipment User Documentation.

Unique symbol or character string used by an information system to identify a specific user. (CNSSI-4009) (NISTIR)

A function in the life cycle of keying material; the process whereby a user initializes its cryptographic application (e.g., installing and initializing software and hardware). (SP 800-57 Part 1) (NIS…

A “list of the chief election officials of each county and municipality responsible for preparation of a program to be used with an el ectronic voting system or for administration of a counting center…

Partnership between the NSA and a U. S. government agency to facilitate development of secure information system equipment incorporating NSA-approved cryptography. The result of this program is the au…

A function in the life cycle of keying material; a process whereby an entity becomes a member of a security domain. (SP 800-57 Part 1) (NISTIR)

The key management entity (KME) authorized by an organization and registered by the Central Facility Finksburg (CFFB) to order asymmetric key (including secure data network system (SDNS) key and messa…

Functional failure that can be remedied by a troubleshooter or election official using only knowledge found in voting equipment user documentation.

The “envelope into which a spoiled, refused, f ound, or challenged ballot is placed.” Hawaii Admin. Regs. §2-51-1.