FBI reports new hoax videos, after warnings that Russia is trying to undermine election

This story originally appeared as part of NPR’s live coverage of the 2024 election. For more election coverage from the NPR Network head to our live updates page.

On Tuesday evening, the FBI called out three fake videos and press releases, which it says are the latest in a series “designed to mislead the American public” about the 2024 election.

The hoaxes include a fabricated statement from the FBI to journalists and bloggers “against publishing information about violence at polling stations,” claiming that doing so could provoke more such incidents.

Another fake is a video impersonating the FBI and another federal agency, making a joint statement suggesting schools suspend in-person classes through Nov. 11 because “the risk of school shooting and riots has increased significantly” due to the election.

A third fake video claims the bureau received “9,000 complaints about malfunctioning voting machines” that were allegedly submitting votes for one candidate.

The FBI said in each case, the fake is “not authentic, is not from the FBI, and its contents are false.”

The bureau has warned about other fabricated videos and statements using its name and insignia to spread false claims of voter fraud and security warnings in recent days. Researchers at Antibot4Navalny, which tracks Russian disinformation, has said the fakes are likely created by Russia.

America’s geopolitical adversaries, particularly Russia, Iran, and China, have been active in trying to influence this year’s election, as part of their larger goals to sow chaos and discredit democracy.

Russia is angling to boost Trump, as it did in the previous two presidential elections, while Iran is trying to undermine the former president, intelligence officials and private-sector researchers say. China does not appear to have a preference in the presidential race, but has targeted congressional races.

All three regularly seize on divisive issues, from immigration to abortion to Israel’s war in Gaza, to exacerbate discord among Americans. And they’ve all experimented with using artificial intelligence to churn out more misleading content.

The stakes could be even higher after Nov. 5 as foreign adversaries are expected to boost election fraud claims and manufacture their own material to cast doubt on the results. Russia is behind a fake video showing ballots being destroyed in Pennsylvania that circulated widely on social media last week, for example.

On Monday, a joint statement from federal agencies warned: “Influence actors linked to Russia in particular are manufacturing videos and creating fake articles to undermine the legitimacy of the election, instill fear in voters regarding the election process, and suggest Americans are using violence against each other due to political preferences.”

Foreign countries are better prepared to exploit the potential uncertainty of the post-election period this year, thanks to what they learned from the 2020 cycle and a better understanding of what happens after polls close, a recently declassified intelligence assessment concluded.

Russia and Iran could even escalate to inciting violence, by stoking threats towards election workers and promoting protests, intelligence officials have said.

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NPR’s Camila Domonoske contributed to this report.