海角大神

Even if hackers don't actually try to听tamper with voting听Tuesday, the unprecedented amount of听cyberattacks this campaign cycle 鈥� and the public warnings of possible Election Day digital fraud 鈥撎齢as already had听a profound impact听on American democracy.听听

Consider this: In the wake of widespread hacks听against political organizations this summer,听听found听that 38 percent of Americans are "concerned"听that the election itself could be hacked, while another 18 percent are "very concerned."听Just 11 percent of respondents said they were "not concerned at all."听

These fears听of digital sabotage, apparently,听led 1 out of 5听respondents to say they might not even vote.

If that's representative of the entire electorate, it means that听some 15 million people could stay home Tuesday 鈥� as a result of a hacking campaign the Obama administration has blamed on Russia.听

After an听unknown group or person known as Guccifer 2.0听claimed responsibility for the hack on the Democratic National Committee听this summer, the Department of Homeland Security听and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence听blamed senior Russian officials听for orchestrating听the breach as part of a broader effort听to sway American public opinion and undermine听trust in the election.听

But the high-profile accusation didn't quash Guccifer: It resurfaced听once again over the weekend听to hint at more Election Day tampering:听"I will monitor that the elections are held honestly.听I also call on other hackers to join me, monitor the elections from inside and inform the US society about the facts of electoral fraud."

While election and cybersecurity experts dismissed that claim as hyperbole, it may be a "last-ditch effort" to sway the vote or deter people from heading to the polls, Justin Fier, director for cyber intelligence听and analysis with security firm Darktrace, .听"His goal during all this time has been public influence."

Warnings that voting booths might be hacked have certainly put state election officials on alert for any abnormalities Tuesday.听DHS officials say they've spoken to all 50 states about providing help with scanning their systems for risks and offering other services, but wouldn鈥檛 detail the assistance specific states had received.

But even if foreign hackers can't compromise actual voting systems, the internet campaign to spread fear of vote hacking and听manipulation may be enough to have a major impact听on public trust.

Daniel Chiu, deputy director of the Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security at the Atlantic Council, noted that since听Republican candidate Donald Trump and others are claiming the election could be rigged, hackers don't need to听actually strike on Tuesday to discredit the vote. "Merely a credible claim of doing so could compel voters to cry foul and undermine the legitimacy of the vote both at home in the US and abroad," said Mr. Chiu.

To be sure,听successfully听compromising voting machines听would be difficult, say experts.听

"The US election landscape is made up of approximately 9,000 different state and local jurisdictions, providing a patchwork of laws, standards, processes, and voting machines," noted听Ian Gray, cyber intelligence analyst at the firm Flashpoint, .听"This environment is a formidable challenge to any actor 鈥� nation-state or not 鈥� who seeks to substantially influence or alter the outcome of an election."

But that's probably not Russia's aim, he said. "Russia can most likely achieve a more reliable outcome with fewer resources not by attacking the election infrastructure directly, but rather by organizing a disinformation campaign attacking confidence in the election itself."

Some experts say that mere reports of possible Election Day hacking听on social media, blogs, and in mainstream news outlets could听fuel听post-election challenges to the results.

"If you lose faith in the process, then what? There could be appeals for months,"听said Ben Johnson, chief security strategist at Carbon Black.听"There could be appeals for months. We need to have enough integrity and transparency in the process so people are comfortable that the election wasn't tampered with."

State officials are on guard for any potential signs of tampering.听"There's a heightened awareness and a heightened concern," said听Karen Jackson, Virginia Secretary of Technology.听"If you're paying attention to cybersecurity, then election systems are just one of the systems you're paying attention to anyway."听

The idea of nameless, faceless hackers or听foreign spies disrupting the election, clearly, is a major concern on Tuesday. But听it's not just a cyberattack that could have an impact, she notes. "Somebody could pull a fire alarm. All of those things have the power to disrupt the voting process."

Staff writer Jack Detsch contributed reporting.