General election 2024: Watch out for scammers
3rd July 2024
Voters have been warned to watch out for scammers amid the general election on 4th July.
Cyber attacks are one of the scams to be aware of as general election day approaches.
Potential motivations for cyber attacks can include financial gain, gathering information, or influencing elections.
Members of the public have been urged to avoid opening suspicious links, emails and websites.
The scammers usually use those means to steal money or harvest valuable personal data.
AI-manipulated content
Voters have also been warned to be careful while reading online articles, especially those from lesser-known websites.
Earlier this year it was reported that a series of Facebook adverts had been circulating online, showing a convincing AI-generated ‘deepfake’ video of the PM promoting investment scams.
Warning of the risks, the website Which? wrote: ‘A June investigation by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism (TBIJ) found more than 8,000 ads on Facebook featuring AI-manipulated videos and false information about politicians.
‘Google researchers have found that AI-generated deepfakes impersonating politicians and celebrities are the most common malicious use of AI. Indeed, they were found to be much more common than AI-assisted attempts at cyber attacks.’
The organisation added that voters should go directly to political party websites or select the highest organic result on search engine results, avoiding the ads/sponsored results shown at the top, to find reliable information.
Read more about cyber security during elections on the UK Parliament website.
How to vote
Polling stations are open from 7am until 10pm at every site on election day.
The address of your local station should be on the polling card sent out a few weeks ago. Remember to bring a valid photo ID.
To be able to vote you need to be registered. The deadline to do so passed on 18th June and anyone who did not register in time will not be able to vote in the general election on 4th July.
Those registered have three ways of voting: in person at a polling station, by post or by proxy.
Read more political news.
