How to spot 10 common election scams
The 2020 election is less than a month away. With millions of people voting, it’s a perfect opportunity for thieves to trick people and take their money.
How are crooks targeting victims? Phone and email scams are the most common tactics. But this year, they’re also leveraging social media to spread disinformation. Tap or click here to see why so many voters want social media shut down during the election.
With so many election scams making the rounds, it’s important to know red flags to look for. If you know how to spot them, you can protect yourself and avoid getting tricked. Here are 10 of the most common election scams you’ll see in the next few weeks, along with how you can catch these scammers in the act.
1. Don’t fall for fake campaign emails
Scammers are impersonating political campaigns by email and asking unsuspecting victims to donate money. If you make the mistake of opening one of these emails, you could end up on a phishing site that steals your data and credit card.
Even worse, you could end up downloading malware. Many of these scam emails instruct users to download what is really a malicious attachment that can infect their computer. Tap or click here to see how the dangerous Emotet botnet spreads through email.
The messages sometimes contain professional graphic design and official campaign photos to look more legitimate. Some even spoof official email addresses owned by campaign staffers. They may also include urgent-sounding language meant to pressure you into sending money and data.
How to spot the scam:
- Avoid opening emails from senders you don’t know or recognize. Even if an email looks like it’s coming from a campaign, you’re better off donating by visiting an official campaign website.
- Never download email attachments from senders you don’t know.
- Check political emails carefully for spelling and grammar errors. These can be big red flags that the sender isn’t actually working with a campaign (or American, for that matter).
- Always check the sender field. If the sender uses a random email address with a jumble of letters and numbers, ignore it. Legitimate political campaign workers will have email addresses ending in .com or .gov.
2. Watch for fake political websites
Fake political websites are growing in number as the election approaches. These websites are designed to look authentic, while stealing your personal and financial data. Some of them ask for campaign donations, while others ask you to sign up with your email address, phone number and credit card.
Spotting these fake websites can be tricky. Many of them use spoofed domains or slightly alter the spelling of real ones. For example, scammers may misspell election as “electon” — or use .com instead of .gov. If you’re not careful, these minor tweaks are easy to miss.
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