Hacking help for US elections

6 Minute English

语言学习

2020-10-15

6 分钟
PDF

单集文稿 ...

  • This is a download from BBC Learning English.

  • To find out more, visit our website.

  • Hello, this is Six Minute English from BBC Learning English, I'm Rob.

  • And I'm Sam.

  • When it comes to US presidential elections, some are more dramatic than others.

  • But few elections have been as controversial as this November's contest between current president Trump and his Democratic rival Joe Biden.

  • In America, where many votes are cast digitally,

  • there is a risk of cyber attacks on election day.

  • And with so much depending on the result,

  • US election officials are worried.

  • In this program, we'll be hearing about plans to prevent election cyber attacks,

  • which involve election officials working with a very unusual group of people,

  • volunteer hackers.

  • Volunteers are people who work willingly without being paid.

  • And hackers are people who break into computer systems without permission in order to find information or do something illegal.

  • But cyber attacks and hackers are not the only threat to fair and democratic elections.

  • In 2000, the presidential race between Al Gore and George W.

  • Bush ended in recounts and disputes over missing votes.

  • George Bush became the first modern president to win the election despite gaining fewer popular votes than his opponent.

  • But how many fewer?