{"id":106806,"date":"2020-09-23T10:20:58","date_gmt":"2020-09-23T17:20:58","guid":{"rendered":"\/blogs\/?p=106806"},"modified":"2025-08-29T01:15:24","modified_gmt":"2025-08-29T08:15:24","slug":"u-s-election-2020-dont-let-covid-19-misinformation-suppress-your-vote","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mcafee.com\/blogs\/internet-security\/u-s-election-2020-dont-let-covid-19-misinformation-suppress-your-vote\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. Election 2020 \u2013 Don\u2019t Let COVID-19 Misinformation Suppress Your Vote"},"content":{"rendered":"

U.S. Election 2020 \u2013 Don\u2019t Let COVID-19 Misinformation Suppress Your Vote\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, another pandemic of sorts took root\u2014this one an \u201cinfodemic.\u201d Whether designed to mislead, instill fear, capitalize on crank remedies, or push phony cures that caused harm or worse, millions of outright false stories about COVID-19<\/a> proliferated across the internet. And continue to do so.<\/p>\n

Now, with our upcoming election in the U.S., there\u2019s concern that this infodemic of misinformation about COVID-19 will keep people away from the polls or from working at them. Particularly elders.<\/p>\n

With this blog, my aim is to point you toward trustworthy resources online that can help you get your vote cast and counted safely.<\/p>\n

COVID-19 misinformation is on the rise<\/strong><\/h3>\n

First, a word about COVID-19 misinformation in general.<\/p>\n

Since the initial outbreak, we\u2019ve monitored online threats and scams related to COVID-19. As shown in our July 2020 Threat Report<\/a>, the first three months saw the number of malicious and scam websites related to COVID-19 jump from 1,600 to more than 39,000, along with a wave of spam emails and posts that peddled bogus sites for protective gear, masks, and cures. Now, in mid-September, our threat detection team has uncovered three million online threats related to COVID-19 and counting. (See the daily tally here for the latest figures<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

Elsewhere, global and national public health officials have worked diligently to counter these waves of misinformation, such as the World Health Organization\u2019s COVID-19 \u201cmythbuster\u201d site<\/a>, in addition to further mythbusting from major news outlets around the world<\/a> and yet more mythbusting from respected science publications<\/a>. However, instances of misinformation, both big and small, persist and can lead to negative health consequences for those who buy into such misinformation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Resources for voting safely\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Whether you\u2019ll vote in person or by mail, these links provide a mix of trustworthy information about voting and the latest verified information about the virus:<\/p>\n