Statement from the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office Regarding Temporary Candidate Portal Outage

PHOENIX — The Secretary of State’s Office detected and successfully responded to a malicious adversary that targeted the Arizona Secretary of State’s website. These attempts were investigated, our security controls tuned for similar attack patterns, and applicable threat intelligence was shared with our cybersecurity partners. The Arizona statewide voter registration database was not targeted and is unaffected by this event. The integrity of all Secretary of State systems has been maintained and the office remains in a heightened security posture as we continue to monitor for new and evolving threats.

"Since day one, I’ve warned that foreign adversaries, particularly Iran, are actively targeting our election infrastructure and political systems. These aren’t abstract threats; they are real, persistent, and growing,” said Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes. “Our office identified patterns of activity consistent with what others are now publicly acknowledging, and we took decisive action to strengthen our defenses early on. I’m proud to say that critical systems—like Arizona’s voter registration database—remained secure and protected throughout. We will continue to lead with urgency and vigilance, because defending democracy doesn’t come with a pause button."

Last week, during routine cybersecurity monitoring, the Arizona Secretary of State’s Information Technology and Security teams detected malicious attempts to inappropriately access the Candidate Portal The team moved quickly to limit access to the systems in order to ensure they were protected from malicious actors.

As a precautionary measure, the Candidate Portal was taken offline temporarily to allow for a full security maintenance review. During this time, the elections department worked directly with candidates who needed to file timely documents with the Office. This ensured a smooth continuation of service.

“We want to recognize and applaud the swift action and exceptional diligence of our Information Technology and Cybersecurity teams and the partners that supported the response. Their expertise and unwavering commitment to the mission of the Secretary of State, and to protecting the foundations of our democracy ensured a rapid and effective response that prioritized the safety of our systems and the confidence of the public,” Secretary Fontes said.

As is best practice following a cybersecurity event, we will continue to maintain a high level of vigilance as we monitor for any additional threats and will provide additional updates as applicable on our official website at azsos.gov.