Microsoft is launching programs to protect the electoral process and use artificial intelligence to provide humanitarian aid.

Mitch Wagner, Executive Editor, Light Reading

September 24, 2018

2 Min Read
Microsoft Goes Captain America, Launches 'Defending Democracy' Program

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Microsoft Ignite -- Microsoft is launching a program to protect the electoral process and keep democracy safe from tampering.

The program, called "Defending Democracy," is designed to "protect our midterm elections" and political campaigns, "increase security of the electoral process, defend against disinformation, and bring greater transparency to political advertising online." Part of the program, AccountGuard, provides "cybersecurity protection at no extra cost to all candidates and campaign offices at the federal, state, and local level, as well as think tanks and political organizations," Rob Lefferts, Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) corporate vice president, security, said in a blog post scheduled to go live Monday.

Microsoft is currently working with more than 30 organizations, focused on large national party operations and high-profile campaigns and think tanks. The company is broadening to additional groups weekly, and is working on plans to extend protection around the world.

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Separately, Microsoft is launching a program to put artificial intelligence to work for humanitarian purposes, budgeting $40 million over five years.

The "AI for Humanitarian Action" program will exploit the potential of AI for non-government organizations (NGOs) and other humanitarian organizations, for disaster response, to benefit children, refugees and displaced people and improve human rights. AI for Humanitarian Action is the third program in Microsoft's $115 million "AI for Good" initiative launched July 2017.

Also at Microsoft Ignite, Microsoft launched new several security initiatives -- including technology to make the password obsolete -- as well as a range of AI, Internet of Things and edge technologies. (See Microsoft Flexes Muscles on AI, IoT & Security and Microsoft Flexes Muscles on AI, IoT & Security.)

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About the Author(s)

Mitch Wagner

Executive Editor, Light Reading

San Diego-based Mitch Wagner is many things. As well as being "our guy" on the West Coast (of the US, not Scotland, or anywhere else with indifferent meteorological conditions), he's a husband (to his wife), dissatisfied Democrat, American (so he could be President some day), nonobservant Jew, and science fiction fan. Not necessarily in that order.

He's also one half of a special duo, along with Minnie, who is the co-habitor of the West Coast Bureau and Light Reading's primary chewer of sticks, though she is not the only one on the team who regularly munches on bark.

Wagner, whose previous positions include Editor-in-Chief at Internet Evolution and Executive Editor at InformationWeek, will be responsible for tracking and reporting on developments in Silicon Valley and other US West Coast hotspots of communications technology innovation.

Beats: Software-defined networking (SDN), network functions virtualization (NFV), IP networking, and colored foods (such as 'green rice').

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