NORRISTOWN – Montgomery County authorities are urging area residents to be vigilant about a phishing scam targeting voters just two months before the 2024 general election.
Scammers are allegedly sending a text message informing voters that they are “not registered to vote” and asking them to click on a link to update their registration, according to a statement released Wednesday. The county has received “less than 10 calls” from people “inquiring about their (voter) registration,” a Montgomery County spokesperson confirmed.
“The recent phishing scam targeting voters in Montgomery County is yet another desperate attempt to prevent participation and voter turnout in the upcoming election,” Neil Makhija, chairman of the Montgomery County Board of Elections, said in a statement Wednesday. “Our team is fully focused on doing everything we can to make voting easier and more accessible for eligible voters. Weak phishing scams will not hinder our progress.”
The fraud is said to have originated from “allvote.com.” As county officials emphasized, this is “an unverified, unsafe website designed to collect personal, confidential information from voters for later exploitation.”
Voters can check their registration status on the Pennsylvania Secretary of State website and contact the Montgomery County Office of Voter Services at 610-278-3280 or [email protected] with questions.
All county election office information “will be official and clearly labeled and easily identifiable,” a Montgomery County spokesperson said. Officials urged residents to never give out personal information to anyone they don’t know.
“We ask citizens to remain vigilant and be cautious with their personal information,” Montgomery County Commissioners Chair Jamila Winder said in a statement. “It is an unfortunate reality that these bad actors know how important voting is to the citizens of Montgomery County and are taking advantage of that to take advantage of them. We must be aware of this and protect our personal information.”
“Residents should never give out personal information to an unknown source,” said Montgomery County Commissioner Tom DiBello. “If you don’t know who is receiving the information, don’t give out confidential information.”
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