Do Process! February 2024
2024: AI and the Election
By Senta Johnson
While we welcome technological evolution in the sphere of law, there are growing concerns about Artificial Intelligence (AI) threatening democratic practices. In their Global Risks Report of 2024, the World Economic Forum ranked AI-derived misinformation as a top risk over the next two years, ahead of climate change and economic weakness. Already countries around the world have faced misinformed voting populations where civilians and political actors alike influenced the outcome of local elections through AI. We’ve previously written about the future legal landscape and AI, but what will it mean for our political future? We are here to help.
The Problem
As Artificial Intelligence grows – with terminology like ‘deep fakes,’ ‘synthetic media,’ and ‘deceptive content’ – so do its implications on the security of democracy. Civilians and political actors alike can create realistic audio and visual material to influence campaigns. Meanwhile, voter literacy has not kept up with these developments. Pew’s 2023 study shows us that alarming numbers of Americans cannot detect AI-generated content or know very little about the subject. It’s reasonable to assume, and act accordingly, that the public images of politicians and candidates are under the control of AI and misinformation.
Federal Response
The Biden-Harris administration addressed an Executive Order in October of 2023. Discourse on strategies like transparency regulations (visual markers for manipulated media) and establishing advanced cybersecurity with authority to remove defaming content has begun. As of this week, twenty spearhead corporations, including Microsoft and Google, have pledged to prevent their software from interfering with elections. While these pursuits are necessary, we are left with some questions: How are these regulations enforced? How will this affect our constitutional right of freedom of press? How will individual states react? Only five have banned AI-maniputed political campaigning (California, Texas, Michigan, Washington, and Minnesota), which do not include our Northeast region.
State Response: Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania Representative Tarik Khan, D-Philadelphia, is leading a bipartisan team of legislators to draft a bill that prohibits the use of AI-campaign material in state elections. The bill would authorize fines – the amounts still are being debated – against AI-creators, including candidates. If this passes, Pennsylvania would be added to the handful of American States that have adopted Anti-AI legislation.
State Response: New Jersey
Interestingly, New Jersey’s two proposals for AI-regulating legislation in 2023 have failed. The state’s aimed detailing should be noted, however, for their approaches are quite different to other states. For example, one of the proposals, if enacted, would only apply for the 90 days before an election. Another idea was to allow registered voters to sue AI-content creators for injunctive or equitable relief. Until the state agrees on the fine tuning, the status of New Jersey’s AI-regulations are in the air.
State Response: Delaware
There are currently no known efforts to regulate AI in Delaware elections.
Conclusion
Democracies revolve around elections as their core. Campaign integrity, social resilience, and reliable tech practices are all necessary in keeping up with the evolving political sphere. How to strike the balance of an honest and informed voter population without overregulating our virtual spaces? We are watching this very debate unfold.
How do I know if a process server is legitimate?
Legal cases are often confusing and stressful for all parties. This especially rings true when a defendant is trying to decide if a process server is genuine or attempting to pull a scam.
Fake process servers and debt collectors are common – these shakedowns even happen to real process servers themselves! Here are some questions to ask yourself if you doubt a process server is rightfully serving you with documents.
Does the process server ask you, (the recipient), for payment?
Lawyers, private individuals, or businesses that hired the process server are the parties that pay. The recipient never pays a process server. If a “process server” demands money from you, we recommend refusing any type of payment and calling law enforcement to report this activity.
Do you know the person trying to serve you papers?
Most, if not all, states require a process server to not be a party to the case. That means that the individual suing you or someone involved in the case cannot present you with legal documents and assert that they were lawfully served. Research your state’s process service rules and regulations for further clarification.
Is the process server younger than 18 years of age?
A fake process server may attempt to use a child to get you to answer the door as they appear less threatening. However, most states require that the process server is older than 18 years of age, therefore a child cannot legally serve you.
Does the process server threaten you?
Process servers are agents of the law, they are not above the law. They should not intimidate or threaten you. Keep in mind, professional process servers are not involved in the lawsuit, so they are not personally invested in collecting money from you. Process servers also cannot issue warrants for arrest, only a marshall or other authorized officer may execute a warrant.
Does the process server ask for sensitive personal identity information?
Process servers often ask for identifying information (your name) to confirm that they are serving the right individual. However, they should not ask for sensitive personal information like your social security number, credit, or debit card information. If an individual asks for sensitive personal information, they may attempt to steal money or worse, steal your identity itself. Do not provide any information and report them to law enforcement or a regulatory agency like The Federal Trade Commission.
Still not sure if a process server is legitimate?
If you still doubt a process server’s intentions, follow up with specific questions that only a professional process server would know:
- “What types of documents are you serving to me?” Typical documents are summons, subpoenas, writs, and complaints.
- “What courthouse is the lawsuit filed and what is the case number?” You can look through public records or contact a county clerk to see if the provided case number is real if you know where the lawsuit is filed.
Reading your state’s rules of civil procedure can offer further verification of appropriate practices and clues to whether a process server is serving you in accordance with the law.