There’s a lot to think about when election season rolls around—where to vote, when to vote, who to vote for—and this year, New Yorkers have another thing to worry about: artificial intelligence. Letitia James, the state’s attorney general, wants to make sure no one gets fooled. On Wednesday, Oct. 13, she released an updated guide to help people spot, avoid, and report election misinformation created by AI. Her message is simple and human: you deserve accurate information so you can cast an informed vote. She’s not just talking about old-fashioned fake news or misleading memes. In the past year, AI-generated images, videos, and audio recordings have become incredibly sophisticated—so much so that even careful viewers can be tricked. The guide is meant to be practical, not scary. It gives New Yorkers concrete steps to check election information with official sources before acting on it or sharing it. James said that bad actors are using AI to spread convincing lies about candidates and about when, where, and how to vote. She also warned that AI chatbots—the apps and websites that answer questions with natural-sounding language—can confidently give voters wrong answers. You might ask a bot where your polling place is, and it might give you a cheerful, believable, completely incorrect response. The attorney general emphasized that no matter how slick the content looks or how authoritative it sounds, the only way to be sure is to verify it with your board of elections or another trusted source. She ended with a reassuring promise: her office is standing guard throughout the election, and they will not let anyone use AI to deceive voters or keep New Yorkers from the polls. That’s a good thing to hear, because when you’re already juggling daily life and trying to make sense of endless information online, the last thing you need is a convincing fake designed to throw you off.
What exactly should you be on the lookout for? James explained that AI tools can create photos, videos, and audio recordings that appear to show real people saying things they never said or doing things they never did. They can also be made to look like official notices or government messages, which is especially dangerous because those are exactly the kinds of things we’re taught to trust. A fake video might show a government official giving false voting instructions. A fake message might try to scare voters into staying home by threatening something that would never actually happen. A robocall or social media post might use cloned audio that sounds exactly like a real person—maybe a candidate, maybe a neighbor, maybe an election worker. The goal is to mislead voters about candidates, voter eligibility, and the basic logistics of voting: where, when, and how. What makes this so unsettling is that these fakes are no longer easy to spot. The earlier version of the attorney general’s guide advised people to look for unnatural body movements, strange lighting, odd shadows, or weird sound in videos. That advice was useful in the early days of deepfakes, but technology has moved quickly. Today’s AI-generated fakes are far more convincing, and many of those warning signs may no longer be present. That’s why James and her office are shifting the focus away from trying to detect the fake yourself and toward relying on trusted sources. If you receive an unexpected message about voting or an election—even if it looks like it’s from an official source—slow down. Check established news outlets, official election websites, or your local board of elections before you believe it or pass it along. This is not about being paranoid. It’s about protecting your own vote and helping protect your community. We all like to share useful information with friends and family, but in this environment, sharing without checking can spread lies and make it harder for everyone to participate in democracy.
The updated guide comes because AI has advanced so quickly since James first released it in 2024. It’s easy to feel like technology is running ahead of our ability to understand it. One day you’re watching a video of a public figure, and it’s actually a computer-generated impersonation. Another day you’re reading what looks like an official government announcement, but it’s a manipulated image. The attorney general’s office is realistic about this challenge: they’re not telling people to become digital forensics experts. Instead, they want New Yorkers to build a habit of checking information before acting on it. If something about voting makes you feel anxious, angry, or rushed, that’s a red flag. Bad actors often use emotional triggers to get you to react without thinking. They might create a message that makes you worry your polling place has changed, or that your registration is invalid, or that there’s some emergency happening at the polls. These are designed to get you to panic and either act on false information or stay home altogether. James and her team are also reminding people that even the tools claiming to detect AI-generated content are not always accurate. There is no perfect way to tell a real video from a deepfake just by looking at it, and there is no reliable app that can scan a message and tell you with certainty whether it’s authentic. That’s why the guide emphasizes using official channels: your county board of elections, the state board of elections, and other established sources. If you’re not sure whether something is true, the safest response is to do nothing with it—don’t share it, don’t act on it, don’t let it change your plans. Just check an official source. It’s a simple, humble approach that acknowledges how tricky this problem has become. No one should feel embarrassed if they’ve been fooled by a sophisticated AI fake. The whole point of the guide is to give everyone a way forward that doesn’t rely on being the world’s best detective.
There’s also a legal angle to this. Under New York law, any political communication that includes seemingly realistic but AI-generated or otherwise deceptive images, video, or audio must be clearly labeled as manipulated. That’s an important protection, because it puts the burden on the people creating and distributing the content, not on individual voters. However, the Office of the Attorney General has cautioned that much of the fake content circulating online is not labeled, and bad actors don’t follow the rules. That means you can’t assume that just because something isn’t labeled, it’s real. The law is still valuable, though, because it gives the attorney general’s office the authority to take action and gives New Yorkers a clear path to report suspicious content. James encouraged anyone who encounters a voting-related video, image, or audio recording that they suspect to be manipulated and that does not include a disclosure to file a complaint with her office. This is an opportunity to turn your concern into action. If you see something suspicious, you don’t have to just scroll past it. You can report it and help the authorities track down the source. This is also a way to protect people who might be more vulnerable—elderly voters, people with less access to reliable information, new citizens, or anyone who might not be as familiar with how fast AI can deceive. By reporting, you’re not just helping yourself; you’re helping your whole community. The attorney general’s message is that this is a collective problem, and it needs a collective response. The OAG is standing guard, but they can’t be everywhere. They need ordinary New Yorkers to be their eyes and ears. And when you do report something, you’re also helping to build a record of what’s happening, which can inform further guidance, investigations, and enforcement. It’s a small step that can make a big difference in keeping elections fair and accessible.
Beyond reporting suspicious content, there are practical steps every voter can take to make sure they have accurate information. First and foremost, James urges New Yorkers not to rely on AI chatbots for voting information. It can be tempting to ask a chatbot a quick question instead of searching for a website, especially when you’re busy or on your phone. But chatbots can sound confident and trustworthy while giving you information for the wrong city or state, incorrect deadlines, or false voting requirements. You might end up at the wrong poll site or miss an important deadline because you trusted a bot that seemed sure of itself. The attorney general put it plainly: voters who rely on a chatbot without checking an official source could end up in the wrong place at the wrong time. Instead, she recommends contacting the New York State Board of Elections or your local board of elections directly. These are the people who actually run elections, and they have the reliable, up-to-date information you need. If you want to find your county board of elections, you can use the state Board of Elections’ county board roster tool. If you want to check your poll site, registration, or ballot status, you can use the voter lookup tool. These resources are official, free, and designed to answer exactly the questions that chatbots might get wrong. The human touch matters here, too. If you’re confused, you can call or visit your local elections office and talk to a real person. That’s often the best way to clear up any uncertainty. James and her team understand that people don’t have time to become experts on election administration. They just want to make sure that when you go to vote, you’re not turned away because you were misled. So the advice is simple: before you act on any voting-related message, take a moment to verify it with an official source. It may take an extra minute or two, but that’s a small price to pay for protecting your right to vote.
The key dates for this election are now set. Early voting runs from Saturday, Oct. 24 through Sunday, Nov. 1, and Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3. That gives New Yorkers plenty of opportunities to cast their ballots, but it also gives bad actors plenty of time to spread misinformation. The attorney general’s updated guide is meant to help you navigate this period with confidence and clarity. The tone of her announcement is not alarmist; it’s empowering. She’s saying: you can do this, you can vote safely and accurately, and you don’t have to be a victim of AI-driven deception. But it does require a little bit of vigilance. Pause before you share. Double-check before you act. Trust official sources over viral posts, even when those posts look polished or come from someone you know. If something makes you feel scared, angry, or rushed, take a breath and verify. And if you see something suspicious, report it to the attorney general’s office. These are simple, human habits that can make a real difference. The conversation around AI and elections can feel overwhelming, especially when you’re bombarded with headlines and social media posts. But the message from Letitia James is ultimately a reassuring one: there are people whose job it is to protect the integrity of the election, and they are paying attention. They’ve updated their guidance because they know the technology has changed, and they’re asking you to update your habits too. You don’t need to be a tech expert. You just need to be willing to check before you trust. That’s something everyone can do. As November approaches, remember that your vote matters. It matters to your community, to your family, and to you. Don’t let a clever fake, a confident chatbot, or a scary robocall keep you from making your voice heard. Use the official resources, trust the real election officials, and show up to vote. That’s the best way to make sure that artificial intelligence doesn’t win—and that democracy does.