60-Second Security Series EAC | Helping America Vote

U.S. Election Assistance Commission

633 3rd Street NW, Suite 200 | Washington, D.C. 20001 

www.eac.gov

Page 1 of 2

March 2024 – v 1.0

Cybersecurity: Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Election Administration 

Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered tools have become much more widely available and capable in recent years. AI tools have 

the potential to benefit society and election offices but can also accelerate false or biased information and undermine fair 

elections if used inappropriately. While these tools do not 

necessarily introduce new cybersecurity risks, AI tools may allow 

existing threats to scale more quickly and effectively. AIgenerated text can dramatically increase the success rate of 

phishing emails and other social engineering attacks. According 

to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), 

these types of attacks can deceive victims into providing their 

login credentials or installing malicious software. State and local

election officials should also be aware that text, images, video, 

and audio content may be used to imitate themselves or other 

official sources of information. 

Additionally, AI is becoming more prevalent within applications 

used by voters to find information, whether they are aware or 

not, either through AI-enhanced search or productivity tools. AIgenerated information may seem plausible, but it is often inaccurate. This lack of accuracy may be particularly harmful to 

voters. Critical voting information, such as voting dates, hours, and locations, require a higher degree of accuracy than many 

AI tools can currently provide. 

The purpose of this document is to provide practical and useful resources to election officials to counter information 

security and cybersecurity threats related to AI in the context of election administration. 

Security Measures

There are several important steps that you can take to improve your office’s security that relate to the possible threats 

posed by AI tools:

Information Security 

Election officials will likely face information security threats based on inaccurate or low-quality information about election 

administration. The sources of this information could be generated directly by an AI chatbot, or AI tools could be 

manipulated to produce inaccurate or inauthentic information. Here are some tips to counter information security threats: 

⃝ Physical Materials

Create written materials that point to your office’s official sources of information, including websites and 

social media feeds. These can be palm cards distributed at your office, bookmarks at your local 

library, direct mailings to registered voters, or other printed materials likely to be seen by your

constituents. A handout template can be found in the EAC’s AI Toolkit for Election Officials. 

The 60-Second Security Series is intended to help election officials quickly identify, and address, potential security 

issues. Each topic includes a brief description, a list of security measures, and potential funding sources for making 

these improvements. More information about election security can be found at www.eac.gov.

Definition:

Large Language Model (LLM) 

Chatbots like ChatGPT are Large Language Models 

(LLMs), a type of generative AI that learns to 

recognize and mimic human speech by analyzing 

vast quantities of text. These tools are advanced 

enough to provide plausible responses to many 

prompts, but the answers generated are not always 

correct. Both the data used to "train" these models 

and user feedback over time can affect the quality 

of the response, but why an LLM provides any 

particular response is often unclear. 
Cybersecurity: Artificial Intelligence

U.S. Election Assistance Commission

633 3rd Street NW, Suite 200 | Washington, D.C. 20001 

www.eac.gov

Page 2 of 2

March 2024 – v 1.0

⃝ Social Media 

Establish your office as a clear source of information by posting consistently on social media. While there are a 

variety of platforms, only use networks that work for your office, keeping in mind the staff time and 

resources required to build an audience. Social media posts are best when kept clear and concise, 

especially if they are about complicated topics like voting by mail or curing a signature. Some offices

use social media post schedulers to ensure their offices publish posts at least a few times each week. The EAC 

provides several toolkits and resources to help election officials effectively communicate with voters. 

Cybersecurity

In addition to information-based threats, AI tools also pose more traditional cybersecurity threats to elections offices. Some 

of these threats are outlined below. 

⃝ Impersonation via Inauthentic Images, Video, or Audio

AI tools can quickly and easily impersonate virtually anyone with only a small sample of that individual’s image or voice.

These tools may take advantage of the public nature of election administration to impersonate an election 

official. To limit the reach of this inauthentic information, be prepared to point local media and the public to 

your official communication channels, including verified social media accounts or government websites.

Governments at all levels are eligible to host their materials on a .gov domain, which clearly identifies a website as 

coming from an official source. Additionally, election officials can find resources to restrict the amount of their personal 

data online on the EAC’s website, including removing their personal information from Google search results. 

⃝ Advanced Phishing Emails

In the past, phishing emails were relatively easy to spot due to incorrect (or even strange) wording or grammar. AI 

chatbots can be used to correct these issues while also creating plausible text that may elicit a response. Due 

to the increased complexity of phishing emails, it is important to be cautious when clicking any links or 

attachments. Look closely at the email address of the sender, ensuring that both the name and email address 

are from known people. Consider the context of the email. Was this an attachment you were expecting, or did it come 

out of the blue? If something looks suspicious but appears to be coming from a known sender, try calling the individual 

to confirm that the email is authentic. 

⃝ Cybersecurity Best Practices

While the type of threats posed by AI tools is not new, this technology can dramatically increase the volume and 

sophistication of cyberattacks. Ensure that your office’s cybersecurity practices are up to date. Keep backup 

records of critical information on separate systems or on paper. Use multi-factor authentication for all 

essential systems. And be sure to follow your office’s guidelines for updating and maintaining your devices. Additional 

resources can be found in the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s (CISA) latest guidance on Generative AI 

and the 2024 Election Cycle and Cybersecurity Toolkit and Resources to Protect Elections. 

HAVA Election Security Funding 

On February 14, 2024, the EAC unanimously voted to allow HAVA Election Security grant funds to be used to counter AIgenerated threats to election administration. These funds may be used to fund voter education efforts, including 

the communication of official information about the voting process. Additionally, the EAC has published further 

guidance related to the use of HAVA funds to counter AI-generated mis- and disinformation. States can reach out 

to the EAC's OGM via email to clarify any concerns about allowability and allocability for specific activities and costs. For 

more information and to review the latest guidance on allowable uses of HAVA funds, go to the EAC Office of Grants 

Management or EAC Grants Guidance, or email grants@eac.gov. 

Funding Opportunities