The Colorado Secretary of State’s Office inadvertently posted a spreadsheet to its website with a hidden tab that included voting system passwords.

In a statement to 9NEWS, a spokesperson for the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office said that “the Department is working to remedy this situation where necessary.”

Wait, what? “Where necessary?” These passwords were on a spreadsheet that was ON the Colorado Secretary of State’s website. To me, remedying the situation means A. yanking the entire spreadsheet off the website and B. IMMEDIATELY changing all the system passwords. 

What’s even more egregious is the lackadaisical attitude from the officials 9news interviewed. 

The passwords that were in the hidden tab are known as BIOS passwords and are one part of the security process for Colorado’s voting machines.

They are passwords needed to configure system settings.

“There are two unique passwords for every election equipment component, which are kept in separate places and held by different parties. Passwords can only be used with physical in-person access to a voting system,” a spokesperson for the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office said.

~Snip 

Matt Crane, a former Republican Arapahoe County Clerk and current executive director of the Colorado Clerks Association, said the fact that the passwords were online, albeit hidden, is concerning, but that the group is satisfied with the actions the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office is taking.

“The truth is, is this a concern? Yes,” Crane said. “Is it being mitigated? Yes. Does this mean that all of the computers are connected to the internet and that votes are being flipped? No.”

Crane said that because every voter votes on a paper ballot – yes, mail-in ballots are still paper ballots – any discrepancies can be audited and remedied.

Except that the passwords were online for months. MONTHS. How many months is unclear. But nothing to worry about folks. It’s all being mitigated, “where necessary.” C’mon Matt!! Do we believe that votes are being flipped? No. Do we have a right to be concerned that the voting systems across the state could’ve been tampered with these last few months because the passwords were online? ABSOLUTELY!! 

The Colorado Secretary of State’s Office inadvertently posted a spreadsheet to its website with a hidden tab that included voting system passwords.

How do we know? Someone right-clicked "unhide."https://t.co/MKU59fnM2l #copolitics

— Marshall Zelinger (@Marshall9News) October 29, 2024

Jena Griswold, who sued and FAILED to keep President Trump off the Colorado ballot, has been consistently and stridently assuring Coloradoans that the entire election process is secure. So secure that no independent third party audits are necessary.

I’m sure it was all just an accident. I mean, who doesn’t leave passwords for voting machines that could change the outcome of a Presidential election on the Secretary of State's website.

— Eric Pistey (@shawnpisteySC) October 30, 2024

If they are so secure, how come ballots in three counties aren’t scannable?

A printer vendor error made some ballots in Moffat, Las Animas and Huerfano counties unscannable, county clerks confirmed to 9NEWS Tuesday.

According to a news release, Moffat County Clerk and Recorder Stacy Morgan was made aware of the issue Wednesday. Huerfano County posted about the issue on their Facebook page Monday, and Las Animas County told 9NEWS they believe they discovered the issue Friday.

Things are so secure in this state, that no one is tampering with any ballots. Oh…wait!

Colorado authorities are investigating an incident in which at least 12 mail ballots appear to have been intercepted before reaching voters intended to receive them, according to a statement from the state’s top elections official on Thursday.

With those passwords having been online for months, how do we KNOW that no one tampered with any of the voting systems across the state?

Quite frankly, I believe Jena about as much as I believe Joe’s garbage insult was just the result of a misplaced apostrophe! 

Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold (D) called a 2021 leak of voting system passwords by a Republican clerk "a serious breach of voting system security protocols." But Griswold tells me that her office's leak of voting system passwords is not a serious breach. #copolitics pic.twitter.com/vClYcZr36t

— Kyle Clark (@KyleClark) October 30, 2024

Whomever thought it was a grand idea to post the voting system passwords ONLINE needs to be identified and fired ASAP. And Jena Griswold needs to explain why her office is so careless with the security of the state’s voting systems. 

Feature Photo Credit: 2024 election pin via iStock, cropped and modified