The FBI Warns of 4 Midterm Election Scams: How to Check a Donation Request Before You Give

A new FBI alert says scammers are borrowing candidates' names, faces and even AI-cloned voices to get your money and your personal data.

What did the FBI warn about?

On Oct. 15, 2026, the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) issued a public service announcement warning that scammers may use the 2026 U.S. midterm elections to steal money and personal information. It names four schemes: fake campaign "investment pools," fake political action committees, merchandise that never ships and fake voter-registration messages.

The alert updates a similar warning the FBI issued in October 2024. What's new is the toolkit. According to the FBI, scammers now use candidates' names, images, logos and slogans, and they use artificial intelligence to create realistic voices, images and messages that impersonate candidates, campaigns, government agencies and even people you trust. A text or voicemail that sounds exactly like a well-known politician is no longer proof that it came from one.

A day later, on Oct. 16, the FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued a second alert aimed mainly at election and campaign officials. It warns that phishing (fake emails) and smishing (fake text messages) are becoming more convincing, and that attackers are using deepfake audio and video. For individuals, it recommends phishing-resistant multi-factor authentication, a stronger kind of login protection, such as a security key or passkey.

How do the four election scams work?

1. The campaign "investment pool." You're told that money you put into a pool tied to a candidate will pay out when that candidate wins. You may also be urged to recruit friends to grow your share. The FBI is blunt here: campaign donations "are not an investment," and they will not increase in value or be returned. Both the promised payout and the pressure to recruit others are on the FBI's list of red flags.

2. The "ScamPAC." You think you're giving to a real political action committee, Super PAC or campaign committee. In reality, the people collecting the money have no connection to that committee and keep it.

3. The merchandise that never arrives. A website or social media ad sells hats, shirts, signs or other political gear. You pay, and nothing ever ships. The FBI classifies this as a non-delivery scam.

4. The fake voter-registration text. A text or email says you aren't registered to vote and includes a link to "fix" it. The link leads to a fake state registration page built to collect your personal information, which the FBI says can be used for identity theft and future scams.

What red flags should make you stop?

The FBI's list of warning signs is short and practical. Be wary of unsolicited calls, texts, emails or surveys; requests for personal information; links from senders you don't know; any promise that a campaign donation will pay you back with a profit; pressure to recruit other people; and contact details that don't match the organization the sender claims to represent. The FBI also lists a PAC that reports high fundraising, consulting, compliance or administrative expenses as a red flag.

Here's a simple five-minute check before you give to any political group:

1. Don't use the link or phone number in the message. Type the campaign's or committee's web address yourself.
2. Look up the committee by name on the Federal Election Commission website (FEC.gov), which the FBI recommends, and confirm it is registered and files financial reports.
3. Compare the payment page address with the official site you found on your own.
4. If you decide to give, use a payment method you can dispute, such as a credit card, so you can ask the issuer to reverse the charge if the group turns out to be fake.
5. To check your voter registration, go directly to vote.gov, the site the FBI points to, instead of clicking a link.

Two facts can also help you spot a fake. The FEC's contribution limits cap what one person can give a federal candidate's committee at $3,500 per election for 2025-2026, with primaries and general elections counted separately, and a campaign can't accept more than $100 in cash from a single source. And political donations are not tax-deductible: the IRS lists "political organizations and candidates" among the groups you can't deduct gifts to in Publication 526. A pitch that promises a tax write-off for a campaign gift is wrong.

What this means for your wallet

The money at risk goes beyond the donation itself. If you type your name, address, birth date or Social Security number into a fake registration form, the FBI says that information can be used for identity theft, such as opening accounts in your name, and for future scams aimed at you.

If you already paid or shared information, act quickly. The Federal Trade Commission's guide for scam victims says to call your credit card issuer or bank right away and ask for the charge to be reversed. If you paid with a payment app such as Zelle or Venmo, report it to the app and ask for a reversal. If a scammer used your Social Security number, report it at IdentityTheft.gov to get a recovery plan. Our guide to credit freezes, fraud alerts and identity theft walks through how to lock your credit files for free, and our step-by-step guide to disputing a credit card charge explains how the dispute process works.

Then report the scam. The FBI asks people to report election-related fraud to a local FBI field office or at ic3.gov, and to include the name of the person or group that contacted you, phone numbers, email and web addresses, how you paid, and a description of what was said and what you handed over. You can also report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

A quick example shows why the payment method matters. Say you gave $250 to a fake PAC. If you paid by credit card, you can call the issuer and ask it to reverse the charge, which is the first step the FTC lists. If the same $250 went out by wire transfer, the FTC's advice is to contact the wire company right away and ask for a refund.