(NewsNation) — With the 2024 election just a few months away, political campaigns are stepping up their fundraising efforts and scammers are trying to get in on the action, creating websites to dupe supporters, according to the cybersecurity firm BrandShield.
From Jan. 2023 to July 2024, BrandShield identified thousands of suspicious domain registrations related to former President Donald Trump (17,243) and President Joe Biden (3,336).
Many of those websites claim to be raising donations but don’t appear to be affiliated with the candidates’ campaigns, BrandShield CEO Yoav Keren said.
Some offer merchandise, while others sell coins and cryptocurrency. One site, which has since been taken down, advertised “Donald Trump currency,” calling it “the biggest, the best, the most incredible currency the world has ever seen.”
Keren believes the Trump campaign’s focus on merchandise has led to more knock-offs which is one of the reasons why more suspicious domains use his name.
Domain registration is when a person or company reserves a name on the internet for a period of time, usually one year. There are legitimate reasons for doing so but scammers often use domains maliciously.
In some cases, they’ll buy a domain that resembles a popular website to entice users to click on the link which ultimately directs them to a phishing site.
In Trump’s case, the BrandShield data shows registrations spiked after major news events like Super Tuesday and his recent conviction in New York — a sign scammers are looking to capitalize when interest is at its peak.
How AI supercharges scams
Artificial intelligence has made it even easier for cybercriminals in recent years. New AI tools have enabled fraudsters to create cheap, professional-looking websites with just a few clicks. Scams that were once obviously fake now look convincing.
The new tech has given scammers two major advantages they didn’t have previously: Speed and scalability.
“When you can do it so easily, with so little effort, you can do a lot of it,” said Lee Rainie, director of the Imagining the Digital Future Center at Elon University.
A recent Elon University poll showed 78% of Americans think at least one abuse of AI will affect the outcome of the presidential election.
So-called deep fakes have already been used to spread misinformation on social media, putting words into politicians’ mouths that they never said. BrandShield’s research identified more than 1,300 imposter social media accounts across TikTok and Instagram related to Trump or Biden.
AI voice cloning has also raised election tampering concerns, which have already come to pass. Earlier this year, voters in New Hampshire received recorded messages mimicking Biden and urging them not to vote. The political consultant behind those robocalls is now facing criminal charges.
The wave of AI innovation has ushered in a new era, where anyone who wants to scam can do so.
“This is really a pivot moment in democratic discourse and in classic political activities when these new media tools are in the hands of anybody who wants to use them,” Rainie said.
Keren is hopeful that AI will be part of the solution: “We fight the bad guys and stop them from doing these things using AI.”
How to spot political scams
There are a few ways you can protect yourself, like steering clear of links from unsolicited emails and texts.
In some cases, a request for a political donation will come from a Political Action Committee (PAC), which you can verify on the Federal Election Commission’s website to see if the PAC is registered. If it’s not, stay away.
You should also look for signs of AI-generated content, like spelling and grammar mistakes.
If you are donating to a campaign, it is better to use a credit card than cash because you can dispute the charge if something is off later on.
