AEC: Stop and Consider
During a federal election a lot of things are said and written about the voting process. Some of it may be false or misleading.
Stop and consider the content and source of what you see, hear or read about the process.
AI-generated text, images, video and audio could be used to try and deceive you about where to vote, how to complete ballot papers or why the process may not be trustworthy. Anyone can be affected.
Apply healthy scepticism. Check or ignore it, but don’t share or repost. You can also report it to the place where you saw it. Support friends and family to do the same.
Australia has one of the most trusted electoral systems in the world. It belongs to voters and we all have a responsibility to protect it.
Don’t risk what we have.
Check the content
Look for:
- words that cause strong feelings, like shock, anger or excitement
- a small number of choices being presented, instead of all of them
- blaming of a particular group or person who is not the only person /group responsible
- attacking a person rather than focusing on an argument.
Check the source
Ask yourself:
- Where did the information come from? Is it from a trustworthy place?
- Is it from Australia or overseas?
- Could it be AI? AI technology makes it easy to create false text, images, video and audio.
- Why was it published? Is there a reason that someone could be trying to convince you of something that isn’t true?
Check our website
Get the true info:
- when to vote
- how votes are counted
- how a result is decided
- how the AEC keeps votes safe.
aec.gov.au 13 23 26
Authorised by the Electoral Commissioner, Canberra
