For example, a deceptive tweet can reach millions of readers in a matter of minutes. And in recent years, the internet and social media platforms have increased the threat of vote suppression. In the United States, there is a long history of using such practices to keep certain voters away from the polls. These factors leave voters more vulnerable to bad actors who use deceptive practices to spread false information in an attempt to trick people out of voting. Voters may not learn about such changes in time to comply, or they may receive conflicting information and not know which sources to believe. Key voting information - including election dates, polling locations, and mail-in voting rules - are suddenly subject to change. This dynamic, even chaotic, environment has enormous potential to create confusion among voters. footnote1_lnxeob5 1 Jim Rutenberg and Nick Corasaniti, “How a Supreme Court Decision Curtailed the Right to Vote in Wisconsin,” New York Times, April 13, 2020, and Allan Smith, “Ohio Primary Called Off at Last Minute Because of Health Emergency,” NBC News, March 16, 2020. In some cases, rules have changed back and forth even in the final hours before Election Day, such as when courts have intervened to block changes. Due to the pandemic, some officials have made significant last-minute changes to the voting process. Elections that have already taken place in 2020 have seen massive changes, including drastic increases in voting by mail or absentee ballot. Many state and local officials have had to completely change their plans in order to address new obstacles like stay-at-home orders, exponentially higher demand for absentee ballots, and the potential shortage of poll workers, who tend to be older and thus are at higher risk for severe illness from the virus. The Covid-19 pandemic has created unprecedented challenges for election administration.

Share intelligence about incidents of disinformation and help disseminate correct information.

Enact the Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act.

Push corrective information to specific users affected by disinformation.

Protect official accounts and websites.

Take down false information about voting but preserve the data.

Maintain clear channels for reporting disinformation.

Proactively provide information about how to vote.

Including in appropriate languages, to facilitate communication before an incident occurs. Perform early public outreach to communities, Build relationships with communities and media.Public to report instances of digital disinformation, work with internet companies, and participate in Actively watch for falsehoods about elections, set up ways for the Media accounts from being used to trick voters by implementing cybersecurity best practices like tight accessĬontrols, multifactor authentication, and anti-phishing procedures. Protect official sources from hacking and manipulation.Information on well-publicized sources like websites, emails, advertising, and social media accounts that are Publicize official sources of accurate information to build public trust.With key actors like community groups, candidates, and the media. Establish channels of communication with the public and Out correct information without repeating falsehoods. Develop plans and procedures to publicize corrective information.In all cases, accurate information from trusted official sources provides the best antidote toĭisinformation about voting. Public can also take action against deceptive practices, voter intimidation, and other forms of digital vote Protecting American voters from disenfranchisement due to disinformation. State and local election officials play a crucial role in defending U.S. Voting - and thanks to social media, these deceptive practices can instantly reach huge numbers of people.Įxperts warn that foreign powers have learned from Russia’s 2016 election interference efforts and will try toĬovertly influence the American electorate this year. Bad actors have circulated lies to trick certain groups out of Sowing confusion for the benefit of their party.

Pandemic-related voting changes have become an election issue themselves, with political actors The Covid-19 crisis has created new challenges for election officialsĪnd pushed them to make last-minute changes to the voting process, typically with resources that were already

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