A contribution intended to help a favored candidate in the upcoming midterm elections could instead send your hard-earned money directly to a scammer.
Voters are being inundated with unsolicited calls, text messages, emails, television commercials and mailers. Many claim that even a modest donation could help a preferred candidate secure victory. Others apply greater pressure, requesting $200, $500 or even $1,000 to preserve a party’s control or defeat its opponents.
Although many Americans view supporting a congressional candidate as part of their civic responsibility, cybersecurity specialist James Knight advises donors to be especially wary of political fundraising appeals delivered by text or email.
Knight told Our News Outlet that he suspects the overwhelming majority of political fundraising messages reaching Americans come from organizations that never pass the money on to the candidates named in the appeals.
“My guess is 99 percent,” Knight said when asked how many political donation advertisements may be fraudulent. “I get a ton of text messages, and I just put them straight into spam, no matter who they are. The volume is pretty bad.”
As these messages continue to flood inboxes, Knight also warned recipients not to click the “unsubscribe” link often included in emails, including those delivered through services such as Gmail.
“If you click unsubscribe in that email, it can take you to a website that could potentially attack the browser on your computer,” he cautioned.
The warning is consistent with an FBI alert about nationwide schemes aimed at political donors. Some fraudsters promise campaign merchandise that is never delivered, while others collect voter information and sell or distribute it to additional criminals.
Voters have been urged to avoid text messages and emails soliciting midterm donations because the money may never reach the candidate identified in the appeal (File Image)
Knight, who has worked in digital security for more than 30 years, said many of these appeals originate with political action committees, or PACs, rather than directly from candidates’ campaign organizations.
PACs raise and spend money to promote or oppose candidates and political causes. While many operate legitimately, others use the appearance of a political organization to disguise fraudulent fundraising.
Knight refers to some of these groups as “ScamPACs.” They may register with the Federal Election Commission, creating an official-looking profile while soliciting money under the promise of helping a particular candidate or cause.
In practice, however, a substantial share of the funds may be consumed by fundraising operations, consulting charges, staff salaries and other administrative costs.
A Reuters investigation found that 31 PACs collected $83.1 million between January 2017 and the middle of 2019. Approximately 82 percent of that money went to eight fundraising companies.
The PACs reviewed in the investigation generally sent less than 10 percent of their proceeds to candidates or causes. In some cases, the amount was below 1 percent.
For the 2022 election cycle, the nonprofit organization OpenSecrets identified 86 potential scam PACs that each reported spending more than $100,000. At least half of their itemized expenditures were categorized as fundraising costs.
Still, legitimate PACs may support candidates through independent expenditures instead of direct campaign contributions, meaning that limited or nonexistent payments to candidates do not, by themselves, prove that a PAC is fraudulent.
Millions of Americans have reportedly had voter information taken and shared with groups seeking to collect and spend midterm donations for their own purposes (Stock Image)
Artificial intelligence has made deceptive political emails and texts more difficult to identify, Knight said, because messages no longer necessarily contain obvious clues such as spelling and grammatical errors.
Criminals can use AI to imitate government agencies, replicate a candidate’s voice or make a message look as though it came from a legitimate campaign.
As a result, a polished text or email should not be treated as proof that a fundraising organization is genuine or will use donations as advertised.
Knight recommends that anyone considering a donation to a House or Senate candidate independently investigate the campaign or fundraising group through the Federal Election Commission’s website, FEC.gov.
The site allows donors to examine committee financial records, including the amount raised, where funds are spent and what assistance is provided to candidates. It can also help voters locate a candidate’s officially registered campaign committee.
“The best thing to do is not click on links in text messages, emails or phone calls that we receive,” Knight said. “A lot of it is going to be fake.”
The FBI has also cautioned that registration with the FEC does not automatically make a PAC trustworthy. Donors should pay close attention to unusually high spending on fundraising, consulting and administrative services.
“There are a lot of scams involving these PACs,” Knight said.
“Some promise fake merchandise, whether it is the latest Trump merchandise or products associated with another candidate, and the items never arrive.”
“Others are simply trying to obtain your information. They claim it is needed for voter registration, but when you follow the link and submit your details, it can lead to identity theft or another scam.”
Donors who provide both money and personal details to a ScamPAC may find themselves facing a wave of additional solicitations long after the midterm elections have ended, Knight warned.
“They have your data, so they will keep calling. You may quickly hear from another hundred agencies or organizations asking for donations. There is very little you can do about it,” he said.
Removing personal information from these lists can be challenging. Knight said donor data is frequently sold or shared with other organizations before victims can request that it be deleted.
He urged people to disregard suspicious calls, block the numbers, delete questionable texts and send unsolicited emails to the spam folder without opening links that could install malware.
“Would you rather give someone $20 or have your laptop infected with malware? I know which one I would choose,” Knight joked.
An FBI bulletin issued October 15 also warned about a “campaign investment pool scheme” aimed at political donors.
In this type of fraud, victims are promised a guaranteed return on money supposedly invested in a candidate’s campaign pool, with the payout allegedly arriving after the candidate wins.
“Victims are also encouraged to recruit others to invest in the pool to increase their share of the payout,” the FBI said.
The agency emphasized that political donations are not investments: They do not appreciate in value and are not returned to donors.
