Fake voter registration text or email
Scammers use election season to text or email people, claiming they are not registered to vote. The link goes to a fake state registration page that is used to steal personal information.
How it works
You receive a text or email saying you are not registered to vote in your state. It urges you to click a link to fix it. The page is made to look like an official state voter site and asks for information such as your name, address, date of birth, or other details. The goal is identity theft and, later, more scams. You can check your real registration yourself at Vote.gov.
Red flags
- An unsolicited text or email says you must register or re-register right away.
- The link is not from a .gov site you typed yourself.
- The message uses a candidate, party, or government name to look official.
- It asks for more personal information than a simple registration check should need.
What to do
- Do not click the link or enter personal information from the message.
- Check your registration yourself at vote.gov or your state's official elections site.
- Report the message to the FBI at ic3.gov and to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov.
- If you already entered information, watch your accounts and consider a fraud alert or credit freeze.
Where to report it
- reportfraud.ftc.gov — the FTC's report form.
- ic3.gov — the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center.