The records of more than 3,000 registered voters in Monroe County may have been viewed during a summer cyber attack on the state election database in Springfield.

About 200,000 voter records may have been accessed in all during the hack, according to the Illinois State Board of Elections.

Monroe County Clerk Dennis Knobloch said the state election board informed his office that the records of 3,049 local registered voters may have been accessed during the cyber attack, which occurred between June 23 and July 13.

“This has nothing to do with the files and records in our local system – the breach took place in Springfield at the State Board of Elections office,” Knobloch stressed.

The Illinois State Board Voter Registration system identified signs of unauthorized access during the period in question and conducted a detailed investigation.

“According to the state board, no voting history information or signature images were captured, and no information in their database was added, changed or deleted,” Knobloch said.

The election board has sent letters to each of the voters they identified as being a part of this intrusion, Knobloch added. The letter includes information on how to access a credit report to make sure there is no unauthorized activity. It also instructs on who to contact – including the Federal Trade Commission and the Illinois Attorney General’s Office – to check for unauthorized activity.

“If you do not receive one of these letters, your account was more than likely not included in this cyber attack,” Knobloch said.

The Illinois State Board of Elections issued the following statement:

“Please rest assured that the fact that this cyber-intrusion occurred, while unfortunate, has no effect on state voting systems or voter rolls, and does not in any way whatsoever impact the integrity of the upcoming Nov. 8 general election.”

Knobloch agreed.

“We are vigilant in our efforts to make sure all of your information remains secure in our local office, and we find it very unfortunate that the Illinois State Board of Elections has allowed this to happen,” he said. “But we do agree with the state board that this should cause no problems with the upcoming general election.”

For more information regarding this situation, contact the Monroe County Clerk’s office at 939-8681, ext. 302.