The FBI issued a statement on Saturday about deceptive videos circulating ahead of the election, saying it’s aware of two such videos “falsely claiming to be from the FBI relating to election security.” That includes one claiming the FBI had “apprehended three linked groups committing ballot fraud,” and one about Kamala Harris’ husband. Both depict false content, the FBI said.
Disinformation — including the spread of political deepfakes and other forms of misleading videos and imagery — has been a major concern in the leadup to the US presidential election. In its statement posted on X, the FBI added:
Election integrity is among our highest priorities, and the FBI is working closely with state and local law enforcement partners to respond to election threats and protect our communities as Americans exercise their right to vote. Attempts to deceive the public with false content about FBI operations undermines our democratic process and aims to erode trust in the electoral system.
Just a day earlier, the FBI, along with the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) said they’d traced two other videos back to “Russian influence actors,” including one “that falsely depicted individuals claiming to be from Haiti and voting illegally in multiple counties in Georgia.”