FOI Request LEX7205

Date: 2025

Summary of FOI Request Documents: Engagement with Online Platforms on Electoral Integrity

Main Purpose of the FOI Request

The FOI request primarily seeks information regarding the Australian Electoral Commission's (AEC) interactions, meetings, and communications with major online platforms (Google/YouTube, Meta/Facebook/Instagram, Microsoft/LinkedIn, TikTok) concerning electoral integrity, the spread of misinformation/disinformation, the impact of AI-generated content, and preparations for the upcoming Australian Federal Election in 2025 (FE25). The focus is on how these platforms are collaborating with the AEC's Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) and Defending Democracy Unit (DDU) to safeguard democratic processes.

Documents from the FOI Request

The released documents include:
* Meeting Invitations and Confirmations: Numerous emails scheduling and confirming meetings between AEC/EIAT representatives and the online platforms.
* Email Correspondence: Extensive exchanges discussing meeting agendas, follow-up actions, sharing insights, and requesting information.
* Formal Letters: Correspondence between the AEC Acting Electoral Commissioner and the CEOs/Directors of the tech companies regarding commitments to electoral integrity accords.
* Internal Briefs and Attachments: Documents like Microsoft's "Best Practices for combating abusive media and deepfakes" and letters outlining company policies and initiatives.
* Redacted Documents: Several documents and subject lines were withheld or partially accessed due to exemptions (e.g., S22, S37, S47E(d), S47F(1), S47G).

Main Content from the FOI Request Documents

Overarching Themes and Commitments:
* Preparation for FE25: All platforms are actively engaging with the AEC and EIAT to prepare for the federal election, focusing on the information environment.
* Electoral Integrity: A central theme, encompassing efforts to counter misinformation, disinformation, cyber threats, and foreign interference.
* AI-Generated Content (AIGC) & Deepfakes: A significant new area of focus, with discussions on detection methods, labeling policies, content provenance, and the potential for misuse. Platforms are exploring and implementing features like watermarking (e.g., Google's SynthID, Microsoft's Content Credentials).
* Lessons from Global Elections 2024: Platforms share observations and insights from elections in other countries (e.g., US, India, UK, EU, Taiwan, Indonesia) and how these learnings are being applied to Australia.
* Referral & Escalation Pathways: Confirmation and streamlining of mechanisms for the AEC/EIAT to report problematic content or issues directly to the platforms.
* Media Literacy & Education Campaigns: Platforms are engaged in or discussing campaigns to help voters identify trusted information sources and critical thinking.
* Security for Electoral Processes: Discussions include protecting campaigns, election officials, and critical infrastructure from cyber threats.

Specific Content by Platform:

Google/YouTube:
* Meeting Agendas: Discussions revolve around Google's approach to AI in elections, content provenance on YouTube, addressing Sovereign Citizen movement misinformation, and overall support for FE25.
* AI & Misinformation: Google has restricted election-related queries on Gemini, implemented ads disclosures for synthetic content in election ads, and YouTube requires creators to disclose realistic altered/synthetic content with labels.
* Platform Tools: YouTube's Community Guidelines, AI labelling, and the "Hit Pause" media literacy campaign are highlighted.
* Incident Response: Prompt action on reported videos (e.g., termination of a channel spreading false claims about digital ID for FE25).
* Tech Accord: Google reaffirms its commitment to the "Tech Accord to Combat Deceptive Use of AI in 2024 Elections," detailing steps such as Model Cards, AI Prohibited Use Policy, AI-Assisted Red Teaming, and expanding SynthID watermarking.

Meta (Facebook/Instagram):
* Media Literacy: Meta supported an "AAP Check the Facts Media Literacy campaign" for the 2023 referendum and a new campaign in H2 2024 focused on AI-generated content awareness.
* Coordinated Inauthentic Behaviour (CIB): Details provided on network disruption efforts, including against the Russian 'Doppelganger' group, and reporting in Meta's Transparency Report.
* AI Policy: Changes to manipulated media policy include adding "AI info" labels to a wider range of content and requiring disclosure for AI/digital methods in political advertising.
* Global Observations: Meta shares observations from 2024 global elections (US, India, Indonesia, EU) regarding AI's impact, freedom of expression, and foreign interference.
* Escalation: Ongoing confirmation of pathways for EIAT/AEC to flag issues.

Microsoft/LinkedIn:
* Democracy Forward Program: Microsoft's "Democracy Forward" team offers in-person briefings and training on safeguarding democratic processes, promoting a healthy information ecosystem, and corporate civic responsibility.
* Cybersecurity & Threat Intelligence: Insights from Microsoft Threat Analysis Centre (MTAC) and Microsoft Threat Intelligence Centre (MSTIC) on nation-state threats, cybercriminal activity, and influence operations.
* AI & Content Integrity: Implementation of Content Credentials (C2PA standard) across products (Bing Image Creator, Microsoft Designer, Copilot, Azure OpenAI DALL-E) to mark AI-generated images with indicators of origin.
* Tools & Services: Offers AccountGuard (no-cost cybersecurity for high-risk users), Azure for Election service (security reviews for critical systems), and Content Integrity Tools for political campaigns/election authorities to apply verifiable signatures to authentic content.
* AEC Employee Protection: AEC requested to block Microsoft AI image generation of specific prominent AEC employees and federal candidates.
* LinkedIn Collaboration: Discussions to establish referral pathways and engagement for election integrity concerns.
* Public Awareness: Development of "Check, Recheck, Vote" website and "Real or Not?" quiz to educate voters on deepfakes.

TikTok:
* Policy Updates: Updated Civic and Election Integrity policies, including protections for election workers and refined AIGC policies requiring user labeling and auto-labeling. Content sharing fake authoritative sources or bullying public figures is prohibited.
* State-Affiliated Media: Expanded policies to make state-affiliated media accounts ineligible for recommendations outside their home country and monthly public reporting on Covert Influence Operations.
* FE25 Preparations: Establishment of a dedicated core working group, prohibition on paid political advertising, active reporting portal access for AEC, and in-app redirection to authoritative election information (AEC's website and TikTok account).
* Proactive Measures: Conducting impersonation sweeps for verified political candidate accounts and issuing policy guidance specific to the election for moderation systems.
* AEC Questions: AEC queries focus on positive uses of TikTok in elections, algorithm priority for authoritative sources, election-specific filters, and changes to referral pathways due to AI-enabled misinformation.

AI Generated

The FOI documents reveal extensive engagement between the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC), particularly its Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) and Defending Democracy Unit (DDU), and major tech corporations including Google/YouTube, Meta (Facebook/Instagram), Microsoft, and TikTok. This collaboration is framed around ensuring "electoral integrity" and combating "misinformation" and "disinformation" ahead of the upcoming Australian federal election.

Social Justice:
The government's stated aims to safeguard the electoral process and ensure access to "timely and accurate information" for voters generally align with progressive values, as informed participation is foundational to a just democracy. Concerns are raised by the AEC regarding content that risks "disenfranchising Australian voters," such as false claims about digital ID requirements for voting. The proactive efforts to protect electoral workers from "harassment and intimidation" also resonate with social justice principles, acknowledging the vital role these individuals play in upholding democratic rights.

Environmental Impact:
These documents do not contain any information directly related to environmental impact or climate change.

Wealth Distribution and Corporate Influence:
A significant theme is the government's profound reliance on private, for-profit tech companies to manage the digital information environment crucial to democratic functioning. This raises serious concerns from a left-leaning perspective, as it implies a transfer of power from public institutions to private corporations whose primary fiduciary duty is to shareholders, not the public good. While tech companies promote their "corporate civic responsibility" and tools like "Democracy Forward," these initiatives are ultimately integrated into their commercial strategies. The fact that the AEC must formally request and negotiate access to information, content moderation policies, and even the ability to "block AI image generation" of its employees highlights the corporations' gatekeeping power. A notable alignment with progressive values is TikTok's explicit "prohibition on paid political advertising," which aims to limit the influence of wealth in elections, contrasting with Google/YouTube's focus on "ads disclosures" for synthetic content.

Civil Liberties:
The focus on combating "misinformation" and "disinformation" presents a double-edged sword for civil liberties. While crucial for a fair election, it opens the door to potential overreach in content moderation. The documents show the AEC directly requesting Microsoft to "block AI image generation of specific AEC employees," including those who appeared in public AEC videos. This type of intervention, extending beyond security concerns to image control, signals a troubling expansion of government requests into expressive liberties, potentially setting a precedent for suppressing legitimate, if critical, digital expression.

Furthermore, a proposed amendment to electoral legislation, which would make it an offense to video or audio record in polling places and post it online without permission, is a significant deviation from civil liberties principles. This directly impacts freedom of the press and the public's right to observe and document democratic processes, eroding transparency.

Finally, the extensive redactions throughout the documents (using exemptions like S22, S47E(d), S47F(1), S47G, and particularly S37 for "Refuse Access" documents) severely limit public understanding of the specifics of these interactions. This lack of transparency undermines the public's right to know how its government is engaging with powerful corporations on critical democratic issues, fostering an environment where corporate influence could operate with reduced public scrutiny.

AI Generated

The FOI documents reveal extensive and increasingly formalized collaborations between the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC)'s Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT), its "Defending Democracy Unit" (DDU), and major online platforms including Google/YouTube, Meta (Facebook/Instagram), Microsoft, and TikTok. These engagements, particularly in the lead-up to the anticipated 2025 federal election, center on managing the online information environment, combating "misinformation," "disinformation," and "inauthentic behavior," and addressing the impact of generative AI on electoral processes.

Individual Liberty: The documents highlight a proactive government role in managing public discourse online, which raises significant concerns for individual liberty. The AEC and EIAT's frequent meetings with tech platforms to discuss "content moderation policies," establish "referral and escalation pathways" for "potential issues," and influence content removal (e.g., the termination of a YouTube channel flagged by the AEC for "incorrect" information about digital ID for voting) suggest a blurring of lines between government information dissemination and potential censorship. From a conservative standpoint, robust free speech is paramount, and government collaboration with private companies to control narratives or remove content, even under the guise of combating "misinformation," risks chilling legitimate political debate and undermining the free exchange of ideas. The discussion about blocking Microsoft AI image generation of specific AEC employees further illustrates a desire for proactive control over digital representation, which, while intended for protection, could be seen as an expansive approach to managing public figures' digital presence.

Limited Government: The extensive and institutionalized nature of the EIAT, which includes various government agencies beyond the AEC (e.g., ASD, ACSC, DITRDCA, ONI), and its deep engagement with tech giants, indicates a significant expansion of government into areas traditionally outside its direct purview. The creation of a "Defending Democracy Unit" and its focus on shaping the "information environment" could be perceived as mission creep, moving beyond the constitutional role of administering elections to actively curating online content. A core conservative principle is limited government intervention in the private sector and individual lives. The formalized "escalation pathways" for government bodies to flag content for private companies to act upon, coupled with discussions about "online platform scenarios," suggests a systemic approach to influencing private platforms' content decisions, potentially deviating from the ideal of a government with clearly defined, restrained powers. Furthermore, the proposed amendment to the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 making it an offense to record in polling places and post online without permission represents a direct legislative curtailment of individual action and potential oversight of public processes, moving away from principles of transparency and limited state power.

National Security: The documents show alignment with conservative principles regarding national security, particularly in addressing foreign interference and cyber threats. Discussions with Microsoft's "Democracy Forward" team focus on "nation-state actors," "cyber threat landscape," and "Russian-linked Influence Efforts." The AEC's interest in services like Microsoft's "AccountGuard" and "Azure for Election" for protecting critical electoral infrastructure from cyberattacks is consistent with safeguarding national interests and democratic processes from external adversaries. This area reflects a necessary government function in protecting national assets and the integrity of democratic systems.

Fiscal Responsibility & Economic Efficiency: While the documents do not provide financial details, the scale of resources dedicated to these initiatives is implied by the numerous meetings, dedicated government units, and complex inter-agency and public-private collaborations. From a fiscal responsibility perspective, questions arise regarding the cost-effectiveness of this extensive governmental apparatus for "election integrity." The reliance on external tech companies for functions like content moderation and "truth" arbitration, while potentially leveraging private sector expertise, might also lead to dependency and unquantified costs, rather than fostering robust internal government capabilities or relying on the free market to self-correct. The long-term efficiency of such broad and deep government engagement in online content management remains unclear from the provided information.

AI Generated

The provided FOI documents reveal a deeply intertwined and concerning relationship between the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC), particularly its "Defending Democracy Unit" and "Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce" (EIAT), and major tech platforms including Google/YouTube, Meta (Facebook/Instagram), Microsoft, and TikTok. This extensive collaboration, purportedly to safeguard "electoral integrity," raises serious questions about government overreach, transparency, and potential for undue influence on public discourse.

Pervasive Secrecy: The most striking feature of these documents is the near-total lack of transparency. Almost every listed document, and significant portions of the internal communications, are subject to "Partial Access" or outright "Refuse Access" exemptions (S22, S47E(d), S47F(1), S37, S47G). The frequent invocation of "national security" (S37) to withhold information regarding discussions with private tech companies about election matters is particularly alarming, suggesting sensitive operational details or questionable agreements are being concealed from public scrutiny.

Government-Tech Nexus for Content Control: The documents illustrate a concerted effort by the AEC/EIAT to establish direct "referral and escalation pathways" with these platforms. This allows the government to flag "potential issues" and "content of concern" – effectively delegating aspects of content moderation to private entities.
* Direct Censorship: A prime example is the AEC's flagging of a YouTube video claiming digital ID would be required for the upcoming federal election. The AEC reported it for "misinformation," and YouTube subsequently "terminated" the channel. While the content was factually incorrect, this direct intervention by a government body, resulting in the removal of content by a private platform, is a chilling precedent for speech control. The AEC's stated concern about "Damaging the perceived integrity of Australian federal elections" highlights a focus on narrative management rather than strictly electoral process.
* AI Manipulation Fears: A significant portion of discussions revolves around the threat of "generative AI" and "deepfakes." The AEC explicitly requested that Microsoft "block" its AI image generation tools from reproducing the likeness of "specific AEC employees" and listed high-ranking officials and state managers for this preferential treatment. This raises concerns about unequal access to content protection mechanisms for ordinary citizens or political opponents who might be similarly targeted by AI-generated deception.

Reliance on Corporate "Partnerships": The AEC appears heavily reliant on tech companies for what should arguably be independent government functions.
* Outsourced Security: Microsoft, through its "Democracy Forward" team, offers "no-cost cybersecurity service" (AccountGuard) and "proactive security reviews" (Azure for Election service) to election officials and political campaigns. This dependence on a foreign corporation for critical electoral infrastructure security creates potential vulnerabilities, vendor lock-in, and raises questions about data sovereignty and the true cost of such "free" services. Microsoft's involvement in analyzing "nation-state threats" further blurs the lines between corporate interests and national security.
* Narrative Influence: Meta's collaboration with the Australian Associated Press (AAP) on "media literacy campaigns" demonstrates how public funds and government authority are directed towards private media and tech companies to shape public understanding, rather than fostering genuinely independent critical thinking. Microsoft's "Best Practices" guide for campaigns, which reads like a PR playbook, further underscores this concerning trend of government involvement in narrative management rather than neutral oversight.

In summary, these documents paint a picture of a government unit, shrouded in secrecy through extensive redactions, forging close alliances with powerful, private tech corporations. This collaboration extends beyond logistical support to encompass de facto content policing and narrative management, raising profound concerns about transparency, free speech, and the potential for a powerful, unelected nexus to shape the democratic process outside of robust public accountability.

AI Generated

The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC), through its dedicated Defending Democracy Unit (DDU) and the multi-agency Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT), is demonstrating exemplary and proactive governance to safeguard the integrity of Australia's democratic processes. These documents reveal extensive and strategic engagement with major online platforms, including Google/YouTube, Meta (Facebook/Instagram), Microsoft, TikTok, X (Twitter), and LinkedIn, underscoring a forward-thinking commitment to a fair and trustworthy electoral environment.

Key Highlights of Government Efforts:

Robust Collaboration with Tech Giants: The government has established and maintains regular, high-level meetings with leading technology companies. These engagements are crucial for exchanging vital insights on global election trends, understanding emerging threats like generative AI and deepfakes, and ensuring that platforms adapt their policies and moderation systems to protect Australian voters. This collaborative framework facilitates rapid response and effective issue resolution.
Proactive Combatting of Misinformation and Foreign Interference: The AEC is actively working with platforms to counter the spread of false information. Examples include Meta's "AAP Check the Facts Media Literacy campaign," which successfully reached millions of Australians, and their significant efforts to disrupt foreign influence networks. When instances of misinformation are identified, such as a YouTube video making false claims about digital ID for voting, the AEC swiftly escalates these concerns, leading to prompt action by the platforms to remove harmful content.
Strengthening Cybersecurity and Electoral Infrastructure: Deep partnerships with entities like Microsoft's "Democracy Forward" team are enhancing the security of Australia's electoral systems. This includes comprehensive training for AEC teams on AI, synthetic media, and cyber threats, as well as the implementation of advanced services like "AccountGuard" and "Azure for Election." These measures are vital for protecting critical infrastructure and high-risk users, demonstrating a commitment to safeguarding the operational backbone of democracy.
Innovating for Transparency and Public Information: The government is embracing new technologies to empower voters with accurate information. Discussions are underway with Google/YouTube and TikTok to create "in-app" information hubs, ensuring authoritative electoral guidance is readily accessible where citizens consume information. Efforts also extend to proactively requesting platforms to prevent AI image generation of prominent electoral staff and candidates, protecting individuals and the integrity of the electoral process from malicious AI misuse.
Adapting to Emerging Challenges: The documents show the government's agility in responding to evolving threats, particularly the rapid advancements in generative AI. Through dialogues on "content credentialing," "watermarking" (e.g., Google's SynthID), and robust "ads disclosure" policies, the AEC is ensuring that platforms are accountable for AI-generated content used in political contexts. Any controversies are framed as complex but manageable challenges, addressed through continuous adaptation of policies and sustained industry cooperation.

In essence, these FOI documents paint a clear picture of a government dedicated to upholding electoral integrity through innovative, collaborative, and decisive action, ensuring the democratic process remains secure and trustworthy for all Australians.

AI Generated

The provided documents paint a damning picture of a toothless Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) struggling with systemic incompetence, bureaucratic inertia, and a disconcerting subservience to global tech giants. The pervasive "Partial Access" and outright "Refuse Access" exemptions (S37, nine documents completely withheld) immediately signal a deliberate government strategy to conceal information, preventing public scrutiny of what are likely critical failures or deeply embarrassing details.

Damning Evidence of Incompetence and Inertia:

Pervasive Delays and Scheduling Chaos: The documents are replete with apologies for "delayed responses," "gentle reminders" from the AEC for basic information, and protracted email exchanges over weeks or even months just to schedule simple meetings. Google's response citing "exceptionally busy" periods and an executive's "kids" dictating AEC meeting times (Page 51) highlights the AEC's shocking lack of leverage. This bureaucratic sluggishness is a profound vulnerability in a rapidly evolving digital threat landscape.
Chronic Lack of Preparedness: The recurring phrase "Although an agenda has not been finalised" for critical meetings with major platforms, even on the day of the meeting, is irrefutable proof of the AEC's reactive and haphazard approach. This suggests a total absence of a coherent, proactive strategy to safeguard democratic processes.
Failure to Protect Personnel: The revelation that the AEC took four months (October 2024 to February 2025) to compile a basic "spreadsheet of names" for Microsoft to block from AI image generation tools (Pages 17, 38) is an egregious and inexcusable failure. This demonstrates a stunning lack of urgency or outright incompetence in protecting key electoral figures and candidates from potentially damaging deepfake campaigns. The AEC is waiting for tech companies to "offer" solutions, then delays even providing the basic data required for implementation.
Dependency on Tech Giants: The AEC consistently appears to be supplicating to tech companies, rather than regulating them. Officials travel internationally to meet platforms (AEC Deputy EC to Singapore for X/Twitter, Page 3), accommodate company scheduling demands, and even ask companies if their own Wi-Fi or presentation equipment will be compatible (Page 6). The AEC is asking tech companies for "insights," "best practices," and even contacts for their own subsidiaries (e.g., LinkedIn contacts from Microsoft, Page 6), exposing a critical absence of independent intelligence gathering and internal expertise.
Weak Information Control: The AEC asking TikTok for confirmation and "comfort" with its own public information (Page 17) before disseminating it on the platform, and TikTok effectively drafting the AEC's "in-app election hub," is a staggering surrender of control over critical civic information. This implies TikTok has a veto over the AEC's messaging, blurring lines between independent electoral authority and corporate public relations.

Damning Implications of Unchecked Digital Threats:

Ineffectual Response to Misinformation: The YouTube video with "75k+ views" making false claims about digital ID for voting that the AEC's "social media team reported yesterday" (Page 32), and which was only "terminated" reactively after gaining significant traction, exposes the dangerously slow detection and moderation capabilities of both the AEC and the platforms. This is not a robust defence but a belated clean-up operation after the damage is done. The AEC's admission that its "social media team are already feeling it!" before the election is called (Page 32) indicates an agency overwhelmed and unprepared for the scale of the challenge.
Corporate Evasion and AEC's Impotence: Meta's chillingly evasive response regarding its approval of political ads inciting violence in the Indian election – claiming "the authors immediately deleted the ads... so we are unable to share any further comment or insight" (Page 8) – is a blatant refusal to provide accountability. The AEC's apparent inability to compel a meaningful answer on such a critical and directly relevant failure exposes its fundamental powerlessness in the face of corporate stonewalling.
Reliance on Public Relations, Not Intelligence: Tech companies repeatedly direct the AEC to their publicly available transparency reports, blog posts, and generic "fact sheets" (Pages 9, 10, 43, 60), instead of providing bespoke or sensitive intelligence. This suggests the AEC is operating with the same information as any interested member of the public, not as a privileged partner in safeguarding democracy.
Unresolved Fundamental Issues: The consistent discussion of "confirming referral and escalation pathways" (e.g., Pages 1, 8, 49) well into 2025, close to a potential federal election, reveals that even the most basic mechanisms for addressing electoral interference are still not firmly established or effective. This indicates an ongoing, critical vulnerability. Furthermore, the AEC's ignorance regarding other Australian government agencies' (ONI's) discussions with tech companies (Page 73) points to a concerning lack of internal governmental coordination on national security threats.
Censorship as a Solution: Google's decision to have Gemini "decline to respond" to a query about voter enrolment after providing an incorrect answer (Page 42), rather than fixing the factual inaccuracy, is a troubling form of censorship. This reflects a platform's preference for avoiding the problem rather than ensuring access to accurate information, with the AEC seemingly accepting this non-solution.

In sum, these documents reveal an AEC that is not only slow, disorganized, and reliant on the goodwill of tech companies, but also appears to be actively prevented from disclosing the full extent of these failings to the public. This lack of transparency, coupled with clear evidence of systemic weaknesses, presents a deeply concerning outlook for the integrity of upcoming Australian federal elections.

AI Generated

These documents reveal an extensive and concerning collaboration between the Australian Electoral Commission's (AEC) "Defending Democracy Unit" (DDU) and "Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce" (EIAT) with major private technology companies, including Google/YouTube, X, Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Oculus), Microsoft/LinkedIn, and TikTok. The primary objective is ostensibly to "safeguard democracy" and ensure "electoral integrity" in the lead-up to the 2025 federal election, focusing heavily on issues of AI, synthetic media, misinformation, disinformation, and cyber threats.

Content Summary:

The documents detail numerous meetings and communications where the AEC/EIAT seeks updates from tech platforms on their global election observations (e.g., US 2024, India, UK), policy changes, and mechanisms for identifying and addressing "electoral integrity risks." Key topics include:
* The impact of generative AI on elections, specifically deepfakes and manipulated media.
* The platforms' approaches to content labeling, watermarking (e.g., Google's SynthID, Microsoft's Content Credentials), and content moderation.
* Discussions on "referral and escalation pathways" for the AEC/EIAT to flag "potential issues" or "content of concern."
* Concerns about "Sovereign Citizen" promotion of misinformation/disinformation.
* Microsoft's "Democracy Forward" initiative, offering security services (AccountGuard, Azure for Election) and training to election officials and campaigns.
* TikTok's commitment to prohibiting paid political advertising and providing in-app redirection to "authoritative election-related information."
* A specific request from the AEC to Microsoft to "block AI image generation of specific AEC employees" and prominent figures, including federal candidates.
* The AEC's interest in the US House Judiciary Chairman's subpoena to Big Tech regarding "foreign censorship of American speech."
* Proposed amendments to the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918, making it an offense to record audio/video in polling places without permission and then publish it.

Alignment with or Violations of Objectivist Principles:

From an Objectivist perspective, these documents present a clear pattern of government overreach and bureaucratic interference that fundamentally violates the principles of individual liberty, reason, and laissez-faire capitalism.

Primacy of Individual Rights: The most egregious violation is the explicit request by the AEC to Microsoft to "block Microsoft AI image generation of specific AEC employees" and a list of "prominent figures plus federal candidates." This is a direct demand for censorship and control over creative expression. It asserts that certain individuals, by virtue of their public office or status, are entitled to suppression of their likeness, even if AI-generated, from public discourse. This is an attack on the individual's right to free expression and an attempt to control the flow of information, treating public figures as beyond the realm of commentary or parody. Similarly, the proposed ban on audio/video recording in polling places without permission, with penalties for publication, is a chilling restriction on transparency and an individual's right to observe and document public processes, irrespective of intent.

The establishment of "referral and escalation pathways" for the AEC to flag "potential issues" and "content of concern" related to "misinformation" and "disinformation" is highly problematic. While preventing outright fraud is a legitimate government function, the vague and subjective nature of "misinformation" opens the door to the suppression of dissenting opinions, critical analysis, or even factual information that contradicts the government's preferred narrative. This places the power to define "truth" in the hands of bureaucrats, undermining the individual's capacity to engage in rational thought and independent judgment.

Rational Self-Interest and the Virtue of Productive Achievement: The involvement of private tech companies in "voluntary" "Tech Accords" and "Democracy Forward" initiatives, while presented as beneficial, is likely motivated by a form of compelled rational self-interest. These companies, operating under the implicit threat of government regulation or public backlash, collaborate to preempt heavier state control. This dynamic distorts the virtue of productive achievement; instead of innovating and creating solely based on market demand and genuine value, resources are diverted to appease government mandates or participate in ideologically driven "partnerships." True productive achievement thrives in an environment of freedom, not in a climate of government "guidance" or "collaboration" on content control.

Dangers of Collectivism and Government Overreach: The entire framework of the "Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce" and "Defending Democracy Unit" exemplifies collectivist thinking. The concept of "electoral integrity" is elevated as a collective good that seemingly justifies any means, including the suppression of individual liberty. The stated goal of "ensuring the Australian public has access to timely and accurate information" is a dangerous premise that can easily lead to thought control. It implies that the "public" is a monolithic entity incapable of independent discernment, requiring government and its corporate partners to curate the information environment. This is the antithesis of a society built on individual reason and self-governance.

The government's active engagement with private platforms to shape their content policies (e.g., AI labeling, "authoritative sources" prioritization, removal of "coordinated inauthentic behavior") represents a profound bureaucratic interference in the private sector. It is not the role of government to dictate how private companies manage content on their platforms or to determine what constitutes "accurate" or "authoritative" information for its citizens. This overreach extends far beyond the legitimate function of government (protecting individual rights through objective law enforcement) into the realm of thought policing and information control. The documents suggest that a complex bureaucracy is actively managing the informational landscape, rather than leaving it to the uncoerced interactions of individuals in a free market of ideas.

In conclusion, these documents reveal a disconcerting trend towards a corporatist state, where government and powerful private entities "partner" to manage the information environment. This alliance, cloaked in the rhetoric of "defending democracy" and combating "misinformation," is a profound threat to individual liberty, free expression, and the principles of a laissez-faire capitalist society. It represents pervasive bureaucratic interference and a suppression of personal initiative, fostering an environment where "truth" is centrally managed rather than discovered through independent reason and open discourse.

AI Generated

Files

FOI Request LEX7205, Schedule of Released Documents [PDF 187KB] (pdf)

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Document 
No. 

Page 
No.  

Document Title 

Exemption 

Decision on Access 

1 

3 

1 

3 

8 

Accepted: EIAT Meeting with X Representatives  

S 22  

Partial Access  

Request for a Meeting with the AEC’s Deputy Electoral 
Commissioner in Singapore  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1)  

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

Partial Access 

Canceled: AEC Meeting with Google and YouTube  

S 22  

Partial Access  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

Confirming Meeting Scheduled for 24 July | AEC & Google   S 22  

Partial Access  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

EIAT Meeting with Google/YouTube Representatives  

S 22  

Partial Access  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1)


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Document 
No. 

Page 
No.  

Document Title 

Exemption 

Decision on Access 

10 

Follow Up – Google/AEC Meeting  

11 

FW: AEC x YouTube: 2025 Election  

13 

Google/YouTube Meeting with AEC 

15 

Google & YouTube x AEC: Federal Election  

Partial Access  

Partial Access  

Partial Access  

Partial Access 

S 22  

S 47F(1)  

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

32 

FOR INFO: YouTube Video Reported Yesterday  

S 22  

Partial Access  

35 

AEC Letter – February 2025  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

Partial Access


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No. 

Page 
No.  

Document Title 

Exemption 

Decision on Access 

11(a) 

37 

Attachment to Document 16 

S 47F(1)  

Partial Access  

12 

40 

Re: Action Items from October Meeting, Including 
Proposed Dates for December Meeting  

13 

45 

Re: Proposed Meeting 

Partial Access  

Partial Access  

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

14 

48 

Re: Request for Meeting with EIAT Representatives  

S 22  

Partial Access 

15 

50 

Re: Request for October Meeting with AEC Defending 
Democracy Unit  

16 

54 

Re: Rescheduling Request  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

Partial Access  

Partial Access


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Document Title 

Exemption 

Decision on Access 

17 

1 

Placeholder: Meta and EIAT Meeting  

18 

3 

Re: New Times available: Request for September meeting 
with AEC Defending Democracy Unit  

19 

8 

REQUEST: Following up on 2024 Action Items 

Partial Access  

Partial Access 

Partial Access  

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

20 

13 

RE: Request for Meeting with EIAT Representatives  

S 22  

Partial Access  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

21 

18 

RE: Russian-linked Influence Efforts in UK Election  

S 22  

Partial Access 

22 

1 

Canceled: Placeholder  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

Partial Access


--- Page 5 ---

Document 
No. 

Page 
No.  

Document Title 

22(a)  

3 

Attachment  

Exemption 

Decision on Access 

S 22  

S 47F(1)  

Partial Access 

23 

6 

RE: 22nd January Meeting Confirmations and Logistics  

S 22  

Partial Access 

24 

9 

Key Highlights from the Microsoft Digital Defense Report 
2024 

25 

11 

Letter from Microsoft  

25(a)  

13 

Attachment to Document 31  

26 

17 

Request for Information: Blocking Microsoft AI Image 
Generation of Specific AEC Employees  

27 

20 

LinkedIn/EIAT Meeting  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22 

S 47(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

Partial Access 

Partial Access 

Partial Access  

Partial Access 

Partial Access


--- Page 6 ---

Document 
No. 

Page 
No.  

Document Title 

Exemption 

Decision on Access 

28 

21 

Microsoft Brief for EIAT 

29 

22 

Microsoft Briefing to EIAT  

30 

24 

Microsoft Democracy Forward | Thank You for Your 
Engagement  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47F(1) 

Partial Access  

Partial Access 

Partial Access 

30(a)  

25 

Attachment to Document 37  

Released in Full  

31 

31 

RE: Administrative/Logistics for Tomorrow’s Meeting  

S 22  

Partial Access 

32 

36 

RE: Follow Up from this Morning and Question about 
Microsoft US  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

Partial Access


--- Page 7 ---

Document 
No. 

Page 
No.  

Document Title 

Exemption 

Decision on Access 

33 

38 

For Action: LinkedIn Meeting Placeholder and List of AEC 
Names to Block from AI Tools  

34 

40 

AEC MSFT Engagements on Wed  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 47G 

Partial Access  

Partial Access  

35 

43 

RE: For Information: NEW MTAC Report on US Election  

S 22  

Partial Access  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

36 

45 

RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan   S 22  

Partial Access  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

37  

50 

RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan  S 22  

Partial Access  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1)


--- Page 8 ---

Document 
No. 

Page 
No.  

Document Title 

Exemption 

Decision on Access 

38 

54 

RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan  S 22  

Partial Access  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 47G  

39 

57 

RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan  S 22  

Partial Access 

40 

60 

RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Thank You  

41  

62 

Re: Placeholder: LinkedIn/EIAT Meeting  

42 

66 

RE: Proposed Meeting  

43 

73 

RE: RSVP in person Briefing from MSFT Democracy 
Forward  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

Partial Access  

Partial Access  

Partial Access  

Partial Access


--- Page 9 ---

Document 
No. 

Page 
No.  

Document Title 

Exemption 

Decision on Access 

44 

78 

RE: RSVP in person Briefing from MSFT Democracy 
Forward  

45 

81 

RE: Suggested Change to Microsoft/AEC Meeting 
Schedule on Wednesday 22 January  

46 

85 

RE: Update: RSVPs and Agenda Items: In Person Briefing 
from MSFT Democracy Forward at AEC  

47 

1 

FW: Letter from the Commissioner | Tik Tok’s Commitment 
to the AI Election’s Accord and Australia’s Upcoming 
Federal Election  

47(a)  

4 

Attachment to Document 56  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

Partial Access  

Partial Access  

Partial Access 

Partial Access  

Partial Access


--- Page 10 ---

Document 
No. 

Page 
No.  

Document Title 

Exemption 

Decision on Access 

48 

7 

Meeting Reminder and Advance Notice of Questions 
during EIAT Chai’s Brief  

Partial Access  

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

49  

8 

RE: Request for Meeting with EIAT Representatives  

S 22  

Partial Access  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

50 

11 

RE: Request for Meeting with EIAT Representatives  

S 22  

Partial Access  

51 

13 

Re: Request for September Meeting with AEC Defending 
Democracy Unit  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

Partial Access 

52  

17 

Copy for TikTok’s Proposed ‘In App’ Information Hub 

S 22  

Partial Access 

53 

20 

Request for Meeting with EIAT Representatives  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

Partial Access


--- Page 11 ---

Document 
No. 

Page 
No.  

Document Title 

Exemption 

Decision on Access 

54 

21 

EIAT Meeting with TikTok Representatives  

Partial Access 

S 22  

S 47E(d)  

S 47F(1) 

55 

56 

57 

58 

59 

60 

Redacted subject line   

S 37 

Refuse Access  

Redacted subject line   

S 37 

Refuse Access  

Redacted subject line   

S 37 

Refuse Access  

Redacted subject line   

S 37 

Refuse Access  

Redacted subject line   

S 37 

Refuse Access  

Redacted subject line   

S 37 

Refuse Access


--- Page 12 ---

Document 
No. 

Page 
No.  

Document Title 

Exemption 

Decision on Access 

61 

62 

63 

Redacted subject line   

S 37 

Refuse Access  

Redacted subject line   

S 37 

Refuse Access  

Redacted subject line   

S 37 

Refuse Access

This document is a log or index of communications and meetings between the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) and various major online platforms, detailing materials released under the FOI request. It lists over 60 individual documents, including meeting invitations, confirmations, follow-up emails, formal letters, and briefing notes, spanning interactions with Google/YouTube, Meta (Facebook/Instagram), Microsoft/LinkedIn, X (formerly Twitter), and TikTok.

The entries indicate extensive engagement on topics such as:
* Meeting Coordination: Numerous entries detail the scheduling, cancellation, and confirmation of meetings between the AEC's Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) and Defending Democracy Unit (DDU) with platform representatives.
* Content Management & Policy: Specific mentions include a "YouTube Video Reported Yesterday," a "Request for Information: Blocking Microsoft AI Image Generation of Specific AEC Employees," and TikTok's "Commitment to the AI Election’s Accord" and a "Proposed ‘In App’ Information Hub."
* Briefings and Information Sharing: References to "Microsoft Digital Defense Report 2024," "Microsoft Brief for EIAT," and "NEW MTAC Report on US Election" demonstrate information exchange on electoral integrity and security.
* Global Lessons: An entry related to "Russian-linked Influence Efforts in UK Election" highlights the AEC's interest in applying insights from international electoral contexts.

The majority of documents listed show a "Partial Access" decision, indicating redactions were applied, while one attachment was "Released in Full." A set of documents (55-63) were marked "Refuse Access" under S 37 exemption.

Relevance to the FOI Request:

This document is highly relevant as it directly addresses the core of the FOI request. It provides concrete evidence of the "extensive interactions" between the AEC and the specified major online platforms (Google/YouTube, Meta, Microsoft/LinkedIn, TikTok, and additionally X) to safeguard electoral integrity ahead of the 2025 Federal Election.

Specifically, it demonstrates:
* Active Engagement: The sheer volume and variety of listed interactions confirm the ongoing collaboration between the AEC's EIAT and DDU and the platforms.
* Focus on Key Themes: Document titles explicitly reference concerns around AI-generated content (AI Election's Accord, AI Image Generation), the need for streamlined referral pathways (reported YouTube video), and the application of lessons from global elections (UK, US election influence efforts).
* Operational Aspects: The entries reflect the practical nature of this collaboration, including the coordination of dedicated meetings and the exchange of information vital for maintaining a secure and credible information environment.

AI Generated

Documents 1-2 - X - Compiled Documents.pdf (pdf)

Download file

--- Page 1 ---

2

From: Google Calendar <calendar-notification@google.com> on behalf (iii

Sent: Monday, 3 February 2025 1:10 PM

To: EIAT

Subject: Accepted: EIAT meeting with X representatives [SEC=OFFICIAL] @ Mon
Feb 3, 2025 11:00 - 12:00 (GMT+9) (EIAT)

Attachments: invite.ics

SE has accepted this invitation.

Good morning ag, Attachments

001.
Thank you for confirming your availability for this meeting in February as the mage png

taskforce works towards the next federal election. The EIAT is planning a
meeting with each of the online platforms early in 2025 and, although an agenda
has not been finalised, we can provide the following as an initial guide.

* Potential timing of FE25, if not already announced

* AEC’s role in the current information environment — education campaigns,
activity on social media

* AEC’s observations from global elections in 2024 and what that may mean for
Australia

* X update

* Changes in policy settings

* Confirmation of referral and escalation pathways

* X’s own observations from elections globally in 2024

Please also feel free to forward this invitation to other X colleagues as you see
fit.

Kind regards,

Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) Secretariat
Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch
Australian Electoral Commission

[cid:image001.png@01DB55E6.FE704050]

--- Page 2 ---

Microsoft Teams Need help?
Join the meeting now

Dial in by phone

Find a local number

Phone conference ) iz

For organizers: Meeting options

This meeting invitation was generated by the AEC Microsoft Teams instance

When
Monday Feb 3, 2025 - 11:00 — 12:00 (Japan Standard Time)

Location

Microsoft Teams Meeting
View map

Guests

EIAT - organizer

Matthew Haigh

SAE - optional
s47F - optional
SN - options!
S47F - optional

View all guest info

Invitation from Google Calendar
You are receiving this email because you are an attendee on the event.

Forwarding this invitation could allow any recipient to send a response to the organizer, be added to the guest list, invite others
regardless of their own invitation status, or modify your RSVP. Learn more

--- Page 3 ---

Defending Democracy Unit
Tuesday, 13 August 2024 7:39 AM

Defending Democracy Unit; Matthew Haigh; 

Request for a meeting with the AEC’s Deputy Electoral Commissioner in Singapore 
in September [SEC=OFFICIAL]

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:

Subject:

Good morning 

, 

I hope this email ﬁnds you well. 

The AEC’s Deputy Electoral Commissioner, Jeﬀ Pope, and Assistant Commissioner of the Electoral Integrity and 
Media Branch, Ma(cid:425) Haigh, will be in Singapore for a conference from Tuesday, 24 September to Thursday, 26 
September. 

Mr Pope would like to arrange a mee(cid:415)ng with you on one of those days to discuss what X may have learned from 
global elec(cid:415)ons this year, in prepara(cid:415)on for the (yet to be announced) next Australian federal elec(cid:415)on. Although 
both he and Mr Haigh will be at the conference for the three days, he will priori(cid:415)se a mee(cid:415)ng with you on one of 
these days based on your availability. 

I would be grateful therefore if you could advise if this works for you and what (cid:415)me would suit. 

Kind regards, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone:

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

1

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Fs22

Document Summary and Relevance to FOI Request

This document contains two email communications from the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) concerning its engagement with the online platform 'X' (formerly Twitter).

August 13, 2024 Email: A request from the AEC's Defending Democracy Unit (DDU) for a meeting in Singapore (September 24-26, 2024) between AEC's Deputy Electoral Commissioner and Assistant Commissioner, and an X representative. The meeting's purpose is to discuss lessons learned by X from global elections in 2024, in preparation for the upcoming Australian Federal Election (FE25).
February 3, 2025 Email: An accepted meeting invitation for a Microsoft Teams call on the same date, between the AEC's Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) and X representatives. The provisional agenda includes discussions on the potential timing of FE25, the AEC's role in the information environment, observations from global 2024 elections (from both AEC and X perspectives), updates on X's policy settings, and the confirmation of referral and escalation pathways for content.

Relevance to FOI Request:

This document is highly relevant to the FOI request, directly illustrating the AEC's "extensive interactions" and "engagement with major online platforms" to safeguard electoral integrity for FE25. Specifically, it demonstrates:

Collaboration with EIAT and DDU: Both the Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) and the Defending Democracy Unit (DDU) are actively coordinating meetings with X, aligning with their roles in the AEC's strategy.
Lessons from Global Elections: A core theme for both scheduled interactions is the application of insights from 2024 global elections to the Australian context, directly supporting the FOI's mentioned goal of learning from international experiences.
Streamlining Referral and Escalation Pathways: The explicit inclusion of "Confirmation of referral and escalation pathways" in the February 2025 meeting agenda directly addresses the FOI's focus on establishing efficient processes for problematic content.
Countering Misinformation/Disinformation: Discussions on "AEC's role in the current information environment," "X update," and "Changes in policy settings" are integral to the broader objective of managing AI-generated content (AIGC) and countering misinformation ahead of FE25.
Preparing for FE25: Both communications are explicitly framed around preparations for the upcoming federal election, ensuring a secure and credible information environment.

AI Generated

Documents 17-21 - Meta - Compiled Documents.pdf (pdf)

Download file


--- Page 1 ---

Subject:
Location:

Start:
End:
Show Time As:

Placeholder: Meta and EIAT meeting
Virtual/MS Teams

Tue 4/03/2025 9:30 AM
Tue 4/03/2025 10:30 AM
Tentative

Recurrence:

(none)

Meeting Status:

Not yet responded

Organiser:
Required Attendees:

EIAT

 Matthew Haigh;

Good a(cid:332)ernoon 

In prepara(cid:415)on for the next federal elec(cid:415)on, the Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) are arranging 
mee(cid:415)ngs with each of the online pla(cid:414)orms. Mee(cid:415)ngs will be led by the Defending Democracy Unit (DDU, AEC) and 
representa(cid:415)ves from the EIAT taskforce agencies are welcome to a(cid:425)end. The EIAT Secretariat would like to thank 
Meta representa(cid:415)ves for conﬁrming their availability for this selected (cid:415)meslot.  

Although an agenda has not been ﬁnalised, the following can provide a guide.  

  Poten(cid:415)al (cid:415)ming of FE25, if not already announced  
  EIAT’s role in the current informa(cid:415)on environment – educa(cid:415)on campaigns, ac(cid:415)vity on social media 
  EIAT’s observa(cid:415)ons from global elec(cid:415)ons in 2024 and what that may mean for Australia 
  Meta update 

o  Any changes in policy se(cid:427)ngs  
o  Conﬁrma(cid:415)on of referral and escala(cid:415)on pathways 
  Meta’s own observa(cid:415)ons from elec(cid:415)ons globally in 2024 including:  

o  Any changes in the online environment, including the use of genera(cid:415)ve AI 

EIAT Taskforce agencies have been invited to request agenda items they would like raised at this mee(cid:415)ng for the 
EIAT Secretariat to consider.  

Please do not hesitate to get in touch for any further clariﬁca(cid:415)on. We look forward to mee(cid:415)ng with you soon.  

Kind regards, 

EIAT Secretariat 
Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
T: 

 M: 

1

s22s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47E


--- Page 2 ---

________________________________________________________________________________ 
Microsoft Teams Need help?  
Join the meeting now  
Meeting ID: 
Passcode: v

Dial in by phone  

Find a local number  
Phone conference ID: 

 Australia, Sydney  

2

s47Es47Es47Es47E


--- Page 3 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Good morning! 

Defending Democracy Unit
Thursday, 12 September 2024 8:45 AM

Defending Democracy Unit
RE: New times available: Request for September meeting with AEC Defending 
Democracy Unit [SEC=OFFICIAL]

Thanks for flagging- you should now have a calendar invite for 18 September via Microsoft Teams. I have included 
 but please feel free to forward to anyone else at Meta who would like to attend. 
yourself and 

Looking forward to the meeting next week. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone:

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, September 11, 2024 1:03 PM 
To: Defending Democracy Unit  
Cc: Defending Democracy Unit  
Subject: Re: New times available: Request for September meeting with AEC Defending Democracy Unit 
[SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Thanks 

 so much for finding some alternative times next week ! 

Yes, if we can please schedule for Wednesday 18th 4-5pm, would work well. Shall I send through a zoom calendar or 
if you prefer to send anther dial in? 

Thanks, 

From: Defending Democracy Unit 
Date: Wednesday, 11 September 2024 at 11:50 AM 
To: 
Cc: Defending Democracy Unit 
Subject: New times available: Request for September meeting with AEC Defending Democracy Unit [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

No problem, I totally understand how busy you all must be. 

1

s22s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Fs47E


--- Page 4 ---

Do you have an hour free within any of these times? 

  3.30pm to 5pm Tuesday, 17 September 
  4pm to 5pm Wednesday, 18 September 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, September 11, 2024 10:42 AM 
To: Defending Democracy Unit 
Subject: Re: Request for September meeting with AEC Defending Democracy Unit [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

Would there be any options for later times throughout the day next week ? Happy to make some suggestions if that 
helps…. 

Unfortunately next week mornings are pretty hectic with global calls across the teams but can try and move things 
around if there is no other options? 

Cheers, 

From: Defending Democracy Unit 
Date: Wednesday, 11 September 2024 at 8:51 AM 
To: 
Subject: RE: Request for September meeting with AEC Defending Democracy Unit [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly- much appreciated. 

Sorry to be a nuisance, but Matt is now unavailable for that time slot, and I am unable to move things around. All 
the other times remain suitable though. Are there any others that suit? 

Many thanks, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 

2

s47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Fs47F


--- Page 5 ---

Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Tuesday, September 10, 2024 11:55 AM 
To: Defending Democracy Unit 

Cc: Defending Democracy Unit 

; 

; 

 Matthew Haigh <matthew.haigh@aec.gov.au>; 

Subject: Re: Request for September meeting with AEC Defending Democracy Unit [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

 is travelling at present. I have checked in with the team and 
Hope you are well. I’m following up on this email as 
we can meet virtually on Wednesday 18th 9-10am. Let me know if you would like to send through a dial in preferred 
platform or I can arrange a zoom calendar. 

Many thanks, 

Executive Assistant APAC Policy | 

facebook |messenger |instagram |whatsapp| workplace |Oculus 

From: Defending Democracy Unit
Date: Monday, 9 September 2024 at 8:53 AM 
To: 

Cc: Defending Democracy Unit 

, 

 Matthew Haigh 

Subject: Request for September meeting with AEC Defending Democracy Unit [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Good morning 

We hope this email finds you well. 

As you would be aware, the AEC is preparing for the next federal election (FE24/25); while the date is yet to be 
determined by government, it could be called at any time with the latest date for it to be held being in May 2025. 
We would therefore like to arrange a meeting with you (and/or appropriate representatives as you see fit) in 
preparation. 

Given you will likely be quite busy in the lead up to the US Presidential election on 5 November, we would like to 
propose a meeting this month. 

3

s47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Es47F


--- Page 6 ---

At this meeting we would be interested in covering: 

an update from the AEC on Australia’s electoral integrity environment 
an update from Meta about your observations and lessons learned from recent elections around the 

globe and how these experiences are shaping your work 

how Meta are responding to electoral integrity risks, with a particular focus on how we can ensure 
the Australian public has access to timely and accurate information about the electoral process 
confirming the options and/or escalation pathways for the EIAT and the AEC to flag potential issues 

with Meta in relation to Australian federal electoral events 

discuss the (FE24/25) version of the Online Platform Scenarios, which, although similar to the 

Referendum scenarios, has had some updates 

Grateful if you could please advise which (if any) of the following dates would be suitable for a September meeting.  

We would be aiming for a one-hour window within the following times. 

Tuesday, 17 September 8am to 9.30am 
Wednesday, 18 September 8am to 10am 
Thursday, 19 September 8am to 9.30am 
Friday, 20 September 8am to 9.30am 

Very happy to discuss further if needed. 

Kind regards, 

 Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

| DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

4

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47E


--- Page 7 ---

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

5


--- Page 8 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Wednesday, 18 December 2024 7:09 PM

; Defending Democracy Unit; 

Re: REQUEST : Following up on 2024 action items [SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

Thank you for your note below and my apologies for the delayed response; just making sure that you have my 
correct email address here going forward. 

We are very pleased to provide below the following outstanding updates and information that we discussed in our 
most recent meetings: 

AAP Check the Facts Media Literacy campaign 

In the lead-up to the 2023 Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice Referendum, we supported a new 
media literacy campaign in collaboration with the Australia Associated Press building on our “Check The Facts” 
campaign, which ran ahead of the 2022 Federal Election in October 2021 and early 2022. The campaign ran for 6 
weeks with a combined reach on Facebook and Instagram in Australia of over 10 million users, creating over 40 
million impressions. Further information on the campaign is available on p37 of our latest Transparency Report 
under the Australian Code of Practice on Disinformation and Misinformation. We also supported AAP to run a new 
campaign in H2 this year, focused on raising awareness of AI-generated content online. This campaign only recently 
concluded and we hope to be able to share the results with you in early 2025.  

Network disruption efforts to counter the Russian ‘Doppelganger’ group 

Please see a detailed case study outlining this work as well as our wider recent efforts to counter Coordinated 
Inauthentic Behaviour on p11 of our latest Transparency Report under the Australian Code of Practice on 
Disinformation and Misinformation, which we submitted through our industry association DIGI in May this year. 

Meta’s approach to labelling AI-Generated content and claims regarding the use of AI in political advertising on 
Meta’s platforms during the Indian election 

In April 2024, we announced changes to the way that Meta is handling manipulated media, based on feedback from 
the Oversight Board and our policy review process with public opinion surveys and expert consultations. This 
included adding “AI info” labels to a wider range of video, audio and image content when we detect industry 
standard AI image indicators or when people disclose that they’re uploading AI-generated content. Further details 
on this announcement may be viewed here. 

With respect to advertising, any user who wants to run ads on our services about elections or politics must go 
through the authorisation process required on our platforms and is responsible for complying with applicable laws. 
Whenever content on our services - including ads - violates our community standards or community guidelines, we 
remove it, regardless of whether or not it is AI-generated. In the case of the reports specifically raised during this 
year’s election in India, the authors immediately deleted the ads in question, so we are unable to share any further 
comment or insight regarding the claims that were made. Leading up to the Australian election, however, we will 
activate our cross-functional election integrity team to work closely with the AEC and monitor for any violations of 
our policies, including relating to mis and disinformation, hate speech and incitement to violence, in relation to the 
election process and debate.  

1

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--- Page 9 ---

Finally, we thought it might also be useful to share with you a recap by our President of Global Affairs, Nick Clegg, 
outlining our efforts and observations across the 2024 global elections, including in the US, India, Indonesia and the 
EU and in relation to the impact of AI, as well as freedom of expression and combating foreign interference. 

We hope that the above information is useful, but please let us know if you have any follow-up questions. We did 
see the recent press reports that Commissioner Rogers’ term at the AEC has recently concluded. We wish him all the 
very best and are sure that his many achievements while in the role were well celebrated ahead of his departure. 
We look forward to the opportunity to meet with the new Commissioner once they are settled into the role in the 
new year.  

In the meantime, we wish you all the very best for a safe and happy holiday season and looking forward to working 
with the AEC in 2025 and collaborating closely ahead of the upcoming election. 

Kind regards 

Head of Policy, Australia & Head of Policy Programs, Australia, New Zealand & Pacific Islands  

From: 
Date: Thursday, 5 December 2024 at 11:52 am 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: RE: REQUEST : Following up on 2024 action items [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

 , Defending Democracy Unit , 

Hi 

, 

Just checking in with a gentle reminder about the below information we requested a couple of weeks back. 

You must have a lot on your plate given the bills relating to social media that went before parliament over the past 
couple of weeks! There is a bit to cover in the email, but if you can give me a rough guide as to when you might be 
able to respond it would be helpful when we are briefing our seniors. 

Let me know if you need any further info. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone:

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

2

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--- Page 10 ---

From:
Sent: Thursday, 21 November 2024 10:47 AM 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: REQUEST : Following up on 2024 action items 

 ; Defending Democracy Unit ;

Good morning 

 ; Matthew Haigh ;

I hope this email finds you well and thank you for the time you have put aside to meet with us over the course of 
2024. 

I am following up on Meta’s action items from our 2024 meetings and correspondence as follows, with our Electoral 
Commissioner particularly interested in the action item from 30 May.  

7 May 2024 - meeting 

  The Commissioner asked for information about media literacy programs Meta had developed for Australia 

and overseas 

o 

 – undertook to provide Meta’s report from a digital media literacy campaign (which 

reportedly had high engagement) which had been run with AAP for the 2023 referendum 

30 May 2024 - meeting 

 

 undertook to provide more information about the use of AI in political advertising on Meta’s platforms 

during the Indian election 

o  Revealed: Meta approved political ads in India that incited violence | India | The Guardian 
o  The Commissioner would like more information about this including what Meta may have learned 
from this experience given Meta’s approach to Australian federal elections is based on lessons and 
understanding from international events. 

10 July 2024 - email 

  As attached, 

 undertook to get back to our Assistant Commissioner about Russian linked influence 

efforts in the UK. Matt has not yet received a reply. 

29 October 2024 - email 

  A follow up question was sent via email (attached) to help inform our Media and Digital Engagement team 
about approached to AI content labelling. We are yet to receive a response/acknowledgement for this one. 

Lastly, by way of update, we are working towards circulation of the online platform scenarios early in the new year 
which, based on your suggestion, we have further update with AI specific scenarios. We will send an calendar invite 
when we have finished workshopping with our EIAT colleagues. 

It’s been a busy year for all of us (for slightly different reasons!), but we’re keen to get some further insights and 
information about these items to help us prepare for the next federal election. 

Please let me know if you would prefer to discuss or would like further information or context. 

Kind regards, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

3

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--- Page 11 ---

From: 
Sent: Monday, 13 May 2024 2:52 PM 
To: Tom Rogers 

; Jeff Pope 

Michael Lynch 
Cc:
Subject: Re: Meta follow-up 

 Matthew Haigh 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

*this* time with our submission attached!! 

From: 
Date: Monday, 13 May 2024 at 12:27 PM 
To: 

Cc: 

Subject: Meta follow-up 

Dear Commissioner, 

Many thanks to you and your team for recently meeting to discuss the latest trends in election integrity 
work within the digital industry, including at Meta. 

As discussed, for each Australian election, we draw on the lessons from the most recent elections that we 
have worked on around the world, tailored with local context, partnership and understanding. As we have 
clarity on the timing of the next federal election, we look forward to establishing more regular 
engagements and scenario planning to ensure both of our teams are ready to liaise in relation to emerging 
issues. 

We appreciate that there has been a greater adoption of Generative AI tools in today's society and we look 
forward to working with the AEC and other stakeholders on the potential challenges that they may 
present. In case it is of interest, I’ve attached our submission to the Department of Industry’s Safe and 
Responsible AI consultation last year. At Meta, we have been working on AI for over a decade and “classic 
AI” is a key part of our content governance and security systems. Additionally, content that has been 
created or altered using AI is still subject to our content policies and fact checking initiative.  

That said, we recognise that new policies and approaches are needed as the use of GenAI becomes more 
widespread. Since we filed our submission late last year, we have made a number of announcements that 
may be of interest to you: 

4

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--- Page 12 ---

  Adjustments to manipulated media policy: in response to feedback from the Oversight Board, we announced changes 
to how we handle manipulated media. The Board recommended that we broaden the scope of our manipulated media 
policy, but stop removing manipulated media that do not otherwise violate our Community Standards. 
Labeling AI-generated Images: we have been working with industry to develop both visible markers and invisible labels 
and metadata on images generated by AI tools. 

 

  AI Ad Disclosure policy: we’ve introduced new disclosure requirements for advertisers using AI or digital methods in 

social, electoral, or political ads. 

As you may have seen, we are also one of the companies that signed up to the Tech Accord to Combat 
Deceptive Use of AI in 2024 Elections is a set of commitments to deploy technology countering harmful AI-
generated content meant to deceive voters. 

And in relation to media literacy campaigns and how we measure success, as we mentioned, ahead of the 
Voice  Referendum,  we partnered  with  Australian  Associated  Press  (AAP)  to  launch  a  new media  literacy 
campaign that shared tips and advice with people so that they could make informed decisions about what 
they read, trust and share. The campaign videos (examples here and here) were scripted and shot by AAP 
FactCheck journalists and aimed to generate awareness of tactics used to spread mis- and disinformation 
and by driving audiences to check the facts via the AAP Fact Check website. The campaign ran for six weeks 
with a combined reach on Facebook and Instagram in Australia of over 10 million users, creating over 40 
million impressions.  

The latest EU campaign that you mentioned is currently being finalised in partnership with the European 
Fact-Checking Standards Network and specifically aims to raise public awareness of how to spot AI-
generated and digitally altered content. The campaign is scheduled to launch ahead of the 2024 EU 
Parliament Elections next month and will comprise a number of infographics and an explainer video. We 
can share details of the campaign’s reach and engagement with you when this information becomes 
available.  

Finally, please let us know if it would be helpful for us to arrange a virtual briefing with our colleague 
director on our security policy team, for a more detailed briefing about security trends and issues we’re seeing globally. 

, a 

Kind regards,  

--  
Regional Director of Policy | Australia, Japan, Korea, New Zealand & Pacific Islands 
M: 

 | E: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

5

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--- Page 13 ---

Monday, 17 February 2025 8:55 AM

; EIAT; 

RE: Request for meeting with EIAT representatives [SEC=OFFICIAL]

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Categories:

Good morning 

Thanks for getting back to me on Friday. You will see I just sent a placeholder invite through for 4 March. I’ll send a 
confirmation of that time through in the next day or two which will include a MS Teams link. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Friday, 14 February 2025 4:19 PM 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: Re: Request for meeting with EIAT representatives [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

 ; EIAT  

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Thanks 

Hi 

Thank you for these dates and suggestions but unfortunately that week is difficult to accommodate as we have 
some travel and I just can’t align. Seems like the 9:30am to 10:30am slot might be your preference and if so, could I 
suggest the following dates :  

- 
Fri 28 
-  Mon 3 
- 
Tue 4 

If you are flexible with alternative times I can look further. 

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--- Page 14 ---

Thank you for your understanding. 
Kind regards, 

Executive Assistant APAC Policy | 
Mobile

facebook |messenger |instagram |whatsapp| workplace |Oculus 

From: 
Date: Friday, 14 February 2025 at 4:01 pm 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: Re: Request for meeting with EIAT representatives [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

 EIAT 

, 

Good afternoon 

Thank you for this and my apologies for the slow reply.  

I’m looping in 

 EA, 

, to assist us with scheduling. 

Thanks again 

Head of Policy, Australia & Head of Policy Programs, Australia, New Zealand & Pacific Islands  

From: 
Date: Thursday, 6 February 2025 at 8:18 am 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: RE: Request for meeting with EIAT representatives [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

, EIAT 

Good morning 

I’ve just had a check of the EIAT Chair’s calendar and have the following three dates available at the moment: 

  Monday 24 February 9:30 to 10:30am 
  Tuesday 25 February 9:30 to 10:30am 

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--- Page 15 ---

  Wednesday 26 February 9:30 to 10:30am 

I will put a placeholder in for Monday to hold at least one of the times (I’ll send it through to you shortly), but please 
let me know if you would prefer one of the other days. 

Many thanks, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: EIAT 
Sent: Wednesday, 5 February 2025 5:22 PM 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: RE: Request for meeting with EIAT representatives [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

Welcome back from your leave! 

Thank you for letting us know that you are both unavailable at the allocated time. I will work with the 
team and get back to you with a new suggested time tomorrow.  

I hope you are having a lovely day. 

Kind Regards, 

 | Project Officer  
Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
DDU Line: 
Email: 

 Direct Line: 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, 5 February 2025 5:18 PM 
To: EIAT 
Cc: 

 Defending Democracy Unit 

3

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--- Page 16 ---

; EIAT 

;

Subject: Re: Request for meeting with EIAT representatives [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

+ 

Good afternoon 

With sincere apologies for the delay in responding, I have just returned from leave and am catching up on emails. 

We are very keen to catch up with the EIAT team but unfortunately, 
of next week; might it be possible to find another time, either later next week or early the following week? 

 and I have travel commitments the first half 

Thanks so much, 

Head of Policy, Australia & Head of Policy Programs, Australia, New Zealand & Pacific Islands  

From: EIAT 
Date: Thursday, 16 January 2025 at 4:52 pm 
To: 
Cc: 

 Defending Democracy Unit 

, EIAT 

, 

Subject: Request for meeting with EIAT representatives [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Good afternoon, 

, 

I hope this email finds you well and you enjoyed your Christmas break. 

In preparation for the next federal election, the Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) are 
arranging meetings with each of the online platforms. Meetings will be attended by the Defending 
Democracy Unit (DDU, AEC) and representatives from EIAT taskforce agencies will also have the option to 
attend. The EIAT Secretariat would be grateful if you could advise if the following time would be suitable; 
please get in contact if this time does not suit and we will make alternative arrangements. 

10th of February 2025, 1:00pm – 2:00pm AEDT  

Although an agenda has not been finalised, the following can provide a guide.  

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--- Page 17 ---

  Potential timing of FE25, if not already announced 
  AEC’s role in the current information environment – education campaigns, activity on social media 
  AEC’s observations from global elections in 2024 and what that may mean for Australia 
  Meta update  

o  Any changes in policy settings 
o  Confirmation of referral and escalation pathways 

  Meta’s own observations from elections globally in 2024 including: 

o  Any changes in the online environment, including the use of generative AI 

Please do not hesitate to get in touch for any further clarification. The EIAT Secretariat would be grateful if 
you could please confirm or arrange an alternative time by COB Monday, 20 January 2025 to ensure we 
have enough time to coordinate with taskforce agencies. Please also feel free to forward this invitation to 
other Meta colleagues as you see fit. 

Kind Regards, 

 | Project Officer  
Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
DDU Line: 
Email: 

 Direct Line: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

5

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47E


--- Page 18 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Matthew Haigh
Wednesday, 10 July 2024 3:41 PM

RE: Russian-linked Influence Efforts in the UK Election [SEC=OFFICIAL]

; Defending Democracy Unit; 

; EIAT

Categories:

Online platforms

Thanks, 

! Appreciate the response. 

Cheers 

Ma(cid:425) 

Ma(cid:425)hew Haigh | Assistant Commissioner, Electoral Integrity and Media Branch (CISO & CRO) 
Australian Electoral Commission  
P: 
E: 

 for PROTECTED material 

 M: 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, July 10, 2024 3:39 PM 
To: Matthew Haigh  
Cc: 
Subject: Re: Russian-linked Influence Efforts in the UK Election [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

 ; Defending Democracy Unit ; 

 ; EIAT  

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi Matthew,  

I hope you are well.  

Thank you for sending through this query. Let us come back to you once we have had the chance to consult with our 
colleagues working on the UK election. 

Speak soon,  

From: Matthew Haigh 
Date: Thursday, 4 July 2024 at 10:20 AM 
To: 
Cc:

, 

Subject: Russian-linked Influence Efforts in the UK Election [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

1

 Defending Democracy Unit 
 EIAT 

s22s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Fs47E


--- Page 19 ---

Hi 

, 

I hope this email finds you well! I’m writing regarding recent ABC reporting relating to five Facebook pages said to 
have been linked to Russian foreign interference in the UK election. I understand these pages have since been taken 
down by Meta for inauthentic behaviour.  

While the material posted was not reported to have received a significant amount of authentic engagement, 
incidents like this present an opportunity for us to learn from real-life events around the world. In order for the AEC 
to consider how we can best prepare ourselves ahead of our next federal election, we are interested in 
understanding more about the following: 

- We understand that advanced persistent threat (APT) actors will adapt their tactics and change profiles. How is 
Meta dealing with this challenge? Is it anticipated that limitations in detection methods may mean similar material 
goes undetected in future? 
- When Meta was made aware of the existence of the pages? 
- What steps were involved between being made aware of the pages and their takedown, and how long this took? 
- Whether there were other pages linked to the same network that have also been uncovered and actioned since? 
- Whether the ads review process detected any paid ads from these pages? 
- Whether elections operations centres include team members who specialise in detecting coordinated inauthentic 
behaviour and counter covert influence operations ahead of electoral events? 
- If there is any further information linking these pages to Russia (beyond the pro-Russian messaging and that 
Nigeria is a known base of operations for Russian-linked influence efforts)? 

Having a more fulsome understanding of Meta’s approach to this type of scenario will be very helpful for us to know 
how best to respond in the event something similar occurs here during our next election. 

We’d be happy to discuss, if needed, and look forward to hearing from you. 

Regards 

Matt 

Matthew Haigh | Assistant Commissioner, Electoral Integrity and Media Branch (CISO & CRO) 
Australian Electoral Commission  
 X: 

 M: 

E: 

 for PROTECTED material 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

2

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47F

This document details extensive communications and meeting arrangements between the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC), specifically its Defending Democracy Unit (DDU) and Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT), and Meta representatives, from May 2024 to March 2025. These interactions directly support the FOI request's objective of understanding how the AEC engages with major online platforms to safeguard electoral integrity ahead of the 2025 Federal Election (FE25).

Key themes and relevance to the FOI request include:

Engagement with Online Platforms: The document clearly demonstrates direct and ongoing engagement between the AEC (EIAT/DDU) and Meta for electoral integrity purposes. Meeting invitations and email threads confirm scheduled discussions and information sharing.
Safeguarding Electoral Integrity: This is the overarching goal of all interactions. Meeting agendas explicitly mention preparing for FE25 and ensuring timely and accurate information about the electoral process.
Countering Misinformation and Disinformation:
- The AEC seeks updates on Meta's observations from global elections, including changes in the online environment related to misinformation and disinformation.
- Meta provides details on its AAP Check the Facts Media Literacy campaign, run for the 2023 Voice Referendum and extended to focus on AI-generated content awareness.
- Meta shares information on its network disruption efforts against Coordinated Inauthentic Behaviour, such as the Russian 'Doppelganger' group, directly addressing foreign interference.
- The AEC specifically queries Meta's response to Russian-linked influence efforts in the UK election to learn from these real-life scenarios for FE25.
Managing AI-Generated Content (AIGC):
- AIGC is a central theme in meeting agendas (e.g., "changes in the online environment, including the use of generative AI").
- Meta outlines its policy changes, including adding "AI info" labels to a wider range of video, audio, and image content, and new AI Ad Disclosure requirements for political advertising.
- Meta highlights its participation in the Tech Accord to Combat Deceptive Use of AI in 2024 Elections.
- The AEC is updating its "Online Platform Scenarios" to include AI-specific scenarios for discussion with platforms.
Applying Lessons from Global Elections: Meeting agendas repeatedly reference discussing EIAT's and Meta's observations and lessons learned from global elections in 2024 (e.g., US, India, Indonesia, EU) and their implications for Australia.
Streamlining Referral and Escalation Pathways: Confirmation of referral and escalation pathways for flagging potential issues with Meta is a standing agenda item for meetings between the AEC and Meta.
Direct Communication Channels: The correspondence explicitly establishes and uses direct communication lines between the AEC's DDU and Meta's policy teams for ongoing collaboration and issue resolution.
Policy Updates: Discussions include Meta's changes in policy settings and how these align with the AEC's needs for FE25.

AI Generated

Documents 22-46 - Microsoft - Compiled Documents.pdf (pdf)

Download file


--- Page 1 ---

Subject:

Location:

Start:
End:
Show Time As:

Recurrence:

Organiser:
Required Attendees:
Optional Attendees:

 (Microsoft) & Commissioner   

Canceled: Placeholder | 
[SEC=OFFICIAL]
NO - Commissioner's Office

Wed 22/01/2025 1:30 PM
Wed 22/01/2025 2:30 PM
Free

(none)

Jeff Pope

; 

; Defending Democracy Unit

; 

Cancelled as updated meeting invite sent for same time. 
________________________________________________________________________________ 

Microsoft Teams Need help?  

Join the meeting now  

Meeting ID: 

Passcode: 

3  

Dial in by phone  

Phone conference ID: 

 Australia, Sydney  

For organizers: Meeting options | Reset dial-in PIN  

To help p o ect y ou  p iv acy  M c osoft Off ce p ev ented au omat c download of th s pictu e f om the Inte net

This meeting invitation was generated by the AEC Microsoft Teams instance 

________________________________________ 

 | Personal Assistant to the Commissioner  

Executive Leadership Team 
Australian Electoral Commission 
 M: 
T: 

 X:

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--- Page 2 ---

________________________________________ 

2


--- Page 3 ---

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--- Page 4 ---

From: 
Sent: Friday, 13 December 2024 9:18 AM 
To: 
Cc: 

Subject: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

As foreshadowed when we saw you a couple of weeks ago, I am delighted that 
Forward team will be visi(cid:415)ng Canberra on 22 January. You met 
Rogers. He works alongside 
world.  

 and 

 on the call we had with Commissioner 

 on our support for elec(cid:415)on commissions around the 

 from our Democracy 

I am keen to work with you on what engagements the AEC would ﬁnd useful. My early ideas are: 

2

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--- Page 5 ---

- 

Training for AEC team: ideally a 90 mins session and we can bring in as many folks as you would like. We 
can work with you on a program, but 
 and team run trainings for elec(cid:415)on oﬃcials globally on AI and 
synthe(cid:415)c media, dis and misinforma(cid:415)on, cyber security etc.  

-  Brieﬁng for EIAT: pick up where 

 le(cid:332) oﬀ with our insights post-US elec(cid:415)on, update on Au and regional 

speciﬁc insights, any other topics of interest to the group. We could also conduct some training for this 
group if we thought that would be useful.  

-  Mee(cid:415)ng with CIO and team: again, picking up where 

 le(cid:332) oﬀ and working with our account team and 

AEC on technical support for the elec(cid:415)on.  
1:1 with Ac(cid:415)ng Commissioner: if this would be a useful engagement. 

- 

It would be great to do some hinking in coming days so I can start to build 

 program this side of Christmas. 

Also, I believe we were wai(cid:415)ng on some follow up from your side following our mee(cid:415)ng with Commissioner Rogers –
please do let us know where this is up to and how we can help. 

Looking forward to our con(cid:415)nued engagement.  

Thanks 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 
Mob: 

3

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--- Page 6 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Categories:

Thursday, 16 January 2025 5:13 PM
Defending Democracy Unit; 

RE: 22nd January Meeting Confirmations and Logistics [SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Thank you 

 As per my other note, we were sending similar emails at similar (cid:415)mes!  

I will merge mine in line below so we can keep in the one chain. Also adding 
visibility, as I am oﬄine tomorrow and he will be in the air over the weekend.  

 for his 

We too are looking forward to these engagements – thank you so much for the work that has going into organising 
it.  

Best 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 
Mob: 

From: Defending Democracy Unit  
Sent: Thursday, 16 January 2025 4:56 PM 
To: 
Cc: Defending Democracy Unit ; 
Subject: [EXTERNAL] 22nd January Mee(cid:415)ng Conﬁrma(cid:415)ons and Logis(cid:415)cs [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

I hope you are having a wonderful start to the new year.  

Ahead of 
conﬁrm some logis(cid:415)cs, agenda items and mee(cid:415)ng (cid:415)me conﬁrma(cid:415)ons.  

 visit to the AEC next Wednesday the 22nd of January, I wanted to reach out to 

Logis(cid:415)cs:  
  As 

 will be here at our Na(cid:415)onal Oﬃce for his 4 mee(cid:415)ngs, with some (cid:415)me in between, 

we wanted to conﬁrm if he will need an oﬃce space for the day? I are more than happy to arrange 
a mee(cid:415)ng room / or desk area for him to call his own for the day. If this is preferen(cid:415)al, please let 
me know the (cid:415)me-period he would like the space for (i.e. 9am -5pm) and I will work with our team 
to coordinate a suitable space. Thank you for this kind oﬀer. I think the only gaps are brief but we 

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--- Page 7 ---

may use that (cid:415)me to pop out for lunch/coﬀee, especially from 12-1240. One ask would be 
someone on hand to escort us out and back into AEC please.  

  Thank you for advising that 

 will be in Canberra for an extra day on the 23rd and 

oﬀering to meet with the EIMB (Electoral Integrity & Media Branch). We have decided to invite any 
interested EIMB members to our EIAT (Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce) mee(cid:415)ng instead of 
having two separate sessions. Thank you, that makes good sense! We can also meet before 11 or 
a(cid:332)er 4pm if there is anything speciﬁc you’d like to discuss that isn’t covered in the other 
mee(cid:415)ngs.  

  Does 

 plan on presen(cid:415)ng with a slideshow / need AV connec(cid:415)on? If so, could you 

please assist in arranging for any presenta(cid:415)ons to be sent through to our Defending Democracy 
Unit Inbox 
ready for 
be able to be sent to you given the conﬁden(cid:415)al nature of some of the content which we 
generally do not “leave behind”. If possible to have a teams link for him to join? That would be 
preferable please and I recall what we did last (cid:415)me.  

 will have slides to share; I am not sure that all will 

 ahead of Wednesday’s mee(cid:415)ngs for us to have 

 presenta(cid:415)ons. 

Topics of interest and Mee(cid:415)ng Conﬁrma(cid:415)ons:  
I can happily conﬁrm all mee(cid:415)ngs with 
opportunity to provide topics of interest to 
his perspec(cid:415)ves as having worked in support of the integrity of elec(cid:415)ons globally. I have outlined some 
topics of par(cid:415)cular interest to each group below.  

 on January 22nd, as listed below. Thank you for the 

 ahead of each brieﬁng. We are keen to hear from 

  Cyber x 

 @ 11:00am – 12:00pm  

o 

Insights into Microso(cid:332)’s Account Guard Service and how other countries have use and 
beneﬁted from the service. 

o  Threat intelligence – interested in understanding trends from state actors.  

  Any observa(cid:415)ons on the level of inﬂuence and interference campaigns vs cyber-

a(cid:425)acks such as DDOS 

  Are inﬂuence and interference campaigns more eﬀec(cid:415)ve for state actors 

than straight out cyber-a(cid:425)acks? 

o 

 will be able to cover these points. He has been working with our colleagues in the Microso(cid:332) 

Threat Analysis Centre (MTAC) and the Microso(cid:332) Threat Intelligence Centre (MSTIC) on latest 
shareable threat insights which he will share. Our colleague 
 will also join this mee(cid:415)ng.  

 from MSTIC, 

  Chief Informa(cid:415)on Oﬃcer x 

o  Arranged by CIO team and 

 @ 12:45pm – 1:30pm  
 (Microso(cid:332)).  

  Brieﬁng to the A/g Electoral Commissioner Mr Jeﬀ Pope by 

 @ 1:30pm – 2:30pm  

o  We are keen for your advice on how the Commissioner would like to use this (cid:415)me and who else 

will be a(cid:425)ending.  

o  As you know from our most recent engagements with Democracy Forward the last few months of 

2024, there is a lot that week can cover and want to ensure we are prepared to meet the 
Commissioners interests.  
o  Some suggested topics include: 

  execu(cid:415)ve level brieﬁng on the cyber threat landscape (MTAC/MSTIC insights);  
 
 
 
  overview of the Democracy Forward visit program including training for poli(cid:415)cal 

support for electoral prepara(cid:415)ons from the technical/customer support perspec(cid:415)ve;  
content creden(cid:415)alling and pilot next steps; 
synthe(cid:415)c media and AI related harms, including advice on how to respond to incidents 

campaigns and journalists; 

  update on implementa(cid:415)on of the Tech Accord (as per correspondence this month)  
  any other topics of interest 

o 

2

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--- Page 8 ---

  Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) x 

 @ 3:00pm – 4:00pm 

Insights into US and global elec(cid:415)ons. 

o 
o  Advances in AI and its eﬀect on democracy. 
o  Key malign or conspiracy narra(cid:415)ves or methods especially if they are new or a new version. 
o  Eﬀec(cid:415)ve methods for reaching voters with the right informa(cid:415)on.  

Thank you this list of topics is great and very useful for 
It would be great to have a list of a(cid:425)endees, or at least Departments/Agencies that will be 
represented if possible.  
While we only have an hour, if there are any scenario based-exercises or planning that we can 
prepare in order to provide prac(cid:415)cal support to the EIAT in its prepara(cid:415)ons, please let us know. 
We would have (cid:415)me in 
that was of interest.  

 program to extend this mee(cid:415)ng to 90 mins to accommodate this if 

 prepara(cid:415)ons.  

On another note, we would love to arrange a mee(cid:415)ng between LinkedIn (or any relevant Microso(cid:332) 
representa(cid:415)ves) and the EIAT ahead of our 2025 federal elec(cid:415)on to discuss appropriate referral pathways, 
online content of concern to the AEC, etc. Are you able to assist us in contac(cid:415)ng the relevant people for 
this? We have the same single escala(cid:415)on mechanism established for both LI and MSFT as previous 
electoral events and will channel all queries through this one mechanism. However, we would be happy 
to facilitate an introduc(cid:415)on to 

 at LI. Let’s discuss next week when we see you.  

We are very excited for next week and look forward to hearing back from you. Thank you for all your help 
in organising, it has been much appreciated.  

Kind Regards, 

 | Project Oﬃcer  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
DDU Line: 
Email: 

 Direct Line: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

3

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--- Page 9 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Subject:

Wednesday, 23 October 2024 2:20 PM

Key Highlights from the Microsoft Digital Defense Report 2024

Follow Up Flag:
Flag Status:

Follow up
Completed

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Dear 

I hope this email ﬁnds you well. I thought that this email may be of interest to members of the EIAT and I would 
welcome you passing it on.  

I am wri(cid:415)ng to share some cri(cid:415)cal insights from the recently published Microso(cid:332) Digital Defense Report 2024, which 
outlines the evolving cybersecurity landscape and the impera(cid:415)ve ac(cid:415)ons required to safeguard our digital domains. 
This year’s report also has a focus on AI and cybersecurity. 

The depth and breadth of Microso(cid:332)’s presence in the digital ecosystem oﬀers a unique perspec(cid:415)ve that we share in 
this report. Every day we process more than 78 trillion security signals and our customers face more than 600 
million cybercriminal and na(cid:415)on-state a(cid:425)acks.  

As useful star(cid:415)ng points, I’d recommend the Execu(cid:415)ve Summary for Governments and Policymakers and blogpost 
from 

, Corporate Vice President for Customer Security and Trust. 

Key Highlights: 

  The lines between na(cid:415)on state actors and cybercriminals are increasingly blurred; na(cid:415)on states are now 

using cybercriminals and their tools to launch a(cid:425)acks.  

  Na(cid:415)on state ac(cid:415)vity was heavily concentrated around sites of ac(cid:415)ve military conﬂict or regional tension.  
  Russia, Iran and China all engaged in elec(cid:415)on inﬂuence eﬀorts this year, with the three actors converging on 

the upcoming US elec(cid:415)ons.  
Fraud and ﬁnancially mo(cid:415)vated cybercrime remains on the rise.  

 
  Cybercriminals are experimen(cid:415)ng with AI as an eﬃciency tool.  

You may also be par(cid:415)cularly interested in the sec(cid:415)on on elec(cid:415)on interference at pp 24-26.  

Microso(cid:332) will con(cid:415)nue to strengthen its security posture via its Secure Future Ini(cid:415)a(cid:415)ve (SFI), collaborate with the 
public and private sector to deter cybercrime and advocate for interna(cid:415)onal rules and norms to govern responsible 
use of cyber online. 

We look forward to con(cid:415)nuing to engage with you closely on these important issues 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 
Mob: 

1

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--- Page 10 ---

2


--- Page 11 ---

From: Jeﬀ Pope 
Sent: Friday, 10 January 2025 1:57 PM 
To: Michael Lynch 

; Ma(cid:425)hew Haigh 

1

; 

s22s22s47Fs47Es47Es47E


--- Page 12 ---

; 

; Thomas Ryan 

 Andrew Johnson 

; Kath Gleeson 

Cc: 

 Rebecca Main 

; Rachael Spalding 

Subject: Le(cid:425)er from Microso(cid:332) [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Folks 

I have received the a(cid:425)ached response from the CEO Microso(cid:332) Australia to my le(cid:425)er to tech companies in mid-
December seeking their ongoing commitment to the AI Accord they signed in Munich in 2024. 

Jeﬀ Pope APM 
Ac(cid:415)ng Electoral Commissioner 

Australian Electoral Commission 
T: 

2

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--- Page 13 ---

Mr Jeff Pope APM 
Acting Electoral Commissioner 
Australian Electoral Commission 
via email: 

Microsoft’s commitment to the ‘AI Elections Accord’ and Australia’s upcoming Federal 
Election 

Dear Mr Pope 

Thank you for your letter of 17 December 2024. Please see below an update from Microsoft on 
measures implemented to meet the commitments agreed to as a signatory of the Tech Accord to 
Combat Deceptive Use of AI in 2024 Elections.  

Since the adoption of the Tech Accord in February 2024, Microsoft has made significant strides to 
prevent the creation of deceptive AI targeting elections, enhance detection and response 
capabilities, and improve transparency and public awareness.  

Microsoft’s Democracy Forward team works closely with campaigns, electoral commissions and 
other entities around the world to support the integrity of the elections, and Microsoft’s Threat 
Analysis Center (MTAC) analyses nation-state threats to provide intelligence and insights on 
cyberattacks and influence operations. In 2024, this took us to a range of jurisdictions, including 
Taiwan, India, the UK, the EU and the US.  

We are bringing this same approach to the forthcoming Australian federal election in 2025. 

We are committed to a set of election protection principles to help safeguard voters, candidates 
and campaigns, and election authorities worldwide. These principles are: 

•  Voters have a right to transparent and authoritative information regarding elections. 

•  Candidates should be able to assert when content originates from their campaign and have 
recourse when their likeness or content is distorted by AI for the purpose of deceiving the 
public during the course of an election. 

•  Political campaigns should protect themselves from cyber threats and be able to navigate 

AI with access to affordable and easily deployed tools, trainings, and support. 

•  Election authorities should be able to ensure a secure and resilient election process and 

have access to tools and services that enable this process. 

Further to our September 2024 progress update, this document sets out further detail on the steps 
we have and are taking to implement the Accord in the lead-up to Australia’s federal election in 
2025. 

s47F


--- Page 14 ---

Addressing Deepfake Creation  

We recognise that companies whose products are used to create AI generated content have a 
responsibility to ensure images and videos generated from their systems include indicators of their 
origin. One way to accomplish this is through content provenance, enabled by an open standard 
created by the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA). Microsoft is a founding 
member of C2PA and has leveraged this standard (“Content Credentials”) across several of our 
products, ensuring that AI generated content is marked as such and that the creator and 
timestamp of images is recorded.  

Specifically, Microsoft has added Content Credentials to all images created with our most popular 
consumer facing AI image generation tools, including Bing Image Creator, Microsoft Designer, 
Copilot, and in our enterprise API image generation tools including Azure OpenAI DALL-E. We 
recently started testing a Content Credentials display in Word. When images with Content 
Credentials are inserted into Word documents, future viewers will be able to right click and see the 
credits and author information of these images. In addition, images with Content Credentials 
uploaded to LinkedIn are automatically labeled and the credential information is shown to end 
users.  

As important as it is to mark content as AI generated, a healthy information ecosystem relies on 
other indicators of authenticity as well. We launched and expanded our Content Integrity Tools to 
support  global elections in 2024 - through the creation of a pilot program that allows political 
campaigns, elections authorities, and select news media organizations globally, to access a tool 
that enables them to easily apply Content Credentials to their own authentic images and videos.  

We also joined forces with fellow Tech Accord signatory Truepic. Microsoft and Truepic have jointly 
released an app that simplifies the process of adding Content Credentials to authentically 
captured smartphone camera images, video, and audio for participants of the pilot. This app has 
now launched for both Android and Apple devices and can be used by those enrolled in Content 
Credentials program.  

Detecting and Responding to Deepfakes  

Microsoft is harnessing the data science and technical capabilities of our AI for Good Lab and 
Microsoft Threat Analysis Centre (MTAC) teams to better assess whether content—including that 
created and disseminated by foreign actors—is synthetic or not. Microsoft’s AI for Good lab has 
developed and is using detection models (image, video) to assess whether media was g enerated 
or manipulated by AI. We can use this detection capability in the context of election campaigns to 
support integrity. 

We are also working with our partners at True Media to provide governments, civil society and 
journalists with access to free tools that enable them to check whether an image or video was AI 
generated and/or manipulated. Microsoft’s contribution includes providing True Media with access 
to Microsoft classifiers, tools, personnel, and data. These contributions will enable True Media to 
train AI detection models, share relevant data, evaluate and refine new detection models as well as 
provide feedback on quality and classification methodologies.


--- Page 15 ---

We are also empowering candidates, campaigns and election authorities to help us detect and 
respond to deceptive AI that is targeting elections. In February we launched the Microsoft-2024 
Elections site. This site empowers candidates, campaigns or election authorities to directly report 
deceptive AI election content on Microsoft consumer services. This reporting tool allows for 24/7 
reporting by impacted election entities who have been targeted by deceptive AI found on Microsoft 
platforms.  

Transparency and Resilience  

In advance of the EU elections we kicked off a global effort to engage campaigns and elections 
authorities. This enabled us to deepen understanding of the possible risks of deceptive AI in 
elections and empower those campaigns and election officials to speak directly to their voters 
about these risks and the steps they can take to build resilience and increase confidence in the 
election. So far this year we have conducted more than 200 training sessions for political 
stakeholders in 23 countries, reaching more than 6,000 participants. We are working closely with 
the Australian Electoral Commission along with political and media stakeholders in Australia, to 
provide support in preparation for the next federal election.  

Building on this training, we have established a public website entitled “Check, Recheck, Vote,” 
which educates voters of the possible risks posed by deepfakes and empowers them to take steps 
to identify trusted sources of election information, look for indicators of trust like content 
provenance, and pause before they link to or share election content. This includes our ‘Real or 
Not?’ Quiz, developed by our AI for Good lab to expose users to the challenges of detecting a 
possible deepfake. So far, individuals from 150+ countries have taken the quiz. We are exploring 
similar activities in Australia.  

Protecting Campaign and Election Infrastructure  

Since the 2016 US election, adversaries have regularly targeted essential systems that support 
elections and campaigns in the US to advance their cyber enabled influence operations. Recent 
Iranian hacking incidents involved attempts by these actors to provide stolen or allegedly stolen 
material to the media to propagate narratives of dissent and distrust. This underscores why we 
continue to invest in efforts that focus on safeguarding the critical infrastructure that underpins our 
elections.  

Our efforts include several initiatives designed to support election officials and political 
organizations. First, we offer AccountGuard, a no-cost cybersecurity service available to our cloud 
email customers in 35 countries, including Australia. This service provides advanced threat 
detection and notifications against nation-state adversaries for high-risk customers, including 
those involved in elections. AccountGuard extends beyond commercial customers to individuals at 
election organizations, their affiliates, and immediate family members who may use personal 
Microsoft accounts for email. We have observed that sophisticated adversaries often target both 
professional and personal accounts, amplifying the need for comprehensive protection. More than 
5.4 million mailboxes of high-risk users are now protected by AccountGuard globally.


--- Page 16 ---

For critical election-adjacent systems, such as voter registration databases and voter information 
portals, we provide our Azure for Election service. This service provides proactive security reviews, 
resilience assessments, and load analysis. During the election week, we offer our highest tier of 
reactive support to address any security or availability issues that may arise.  

In the upcoming election in Australia, as per previous federal and state electoral events, we 
establish a dedicated escalation point staffed by our team to provide constant management and 
triage of any election-sensitive issues and maintain real-time communications across our industry 
partners. This ensured that any incidents received the highest level of priority and executive 
support.  

While we continue to provide robust security services, we recognize that collaboration is essential. 
Public-private partnerships are crucial in strengthening the entire ecosystem. For example, our 
Democracy Forward team actively participates in tabletop cybersecurity training exercises 
convened by US election officials.  

Microsoft remains steadfast in its commitment to supporting the security and integrity of 
democratic processes. Through our comprehensive programs and collaborative efforts, we aim to 
protect democracy from the evolving threats posed by nation-state actors.  

We look forward to supporting the AEC during the upcoming electoral period, including through the 
visit to Canberra in late January by executives from our Democracy Forward team.  

Yours sincerely 

Director, Corporate External and Legal Affairs 
Microsoft Australia and New Zealand 
9 January 2025 

s47F


--- Page 17 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Subject:

Defending Democracy Unit 
Tuesday, 29 October 2024 11:39 AM

FW: Request for information: blocking Microsoft AI image generation of specific 
AEC employees [SEC=OFFICIAL]

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, 16 October 2024 4:28 PM 
To:
Cc: Defending Democracy Unit ; 
Subject: RE: Request for information: blocking Microsoft AI image generation of specific AEC employees 
[SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. I’ll discuss with the right teams and get back to you as suggested. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, 16 October 2024 3:28 PM 
To: 
Cc: Defending Democracy Unit 
; 

; 

Subject: Re: Request for information: blocking Microsoft AI image generation of specific AEC employees 
[SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

s22s22s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs 47Fs47F


--- Page 18 ---

Thanks, all! 

Honestly, all I need is a spreadsheet of names. And you’re welcome to update it regularly. Ideally it would 
be prominent figures plus federal candidates, but we’ll leave that to you to decide. 

From: 
Sent: Tuesday, October 15, 2024 5:57:42 PM 
To: 
Cc: Defending Democracy Unit 
; 

; 

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Request for information: blocking Microsoft AI image generation of specific AEC employees 
[SEC=OFFICIAL]  

That’s great, thanks so much 

. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, 16 October 2024 11:52 AM 
To: 
Cc: Defending Democracy Unit 

Subject: RE: Request for information: blocking Microsoft AI image generation of specific AEC employees 
[SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Thank you 

 for reaching out. 

I am adding 
headquarters. 

Best 

 to advise on how we take this forward, as he will lead this effort from our 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Affairs 

2

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--- Page 19 ---

www.microsoft.com 
Mob: 

From: 
Sent: Tuesday, 15 October 2024 5:48 PM 
To: 
Cc: Defending Democracy Unit 

Subject: [EXTERNAL] Request for information: blocking Microsoft AI image generation of specific AEC employees 
[SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

I hope this email finds you well. 

At our last two Microsoft meetings we have been offered the opportunity to have prominent people (such as our 
Electoral Commissioner, Tom Rogers) blocked from having their image created on Microsoft’s AI image generating 
tools. 

There is interest in this from some of our executive so I am reaching out for more information, including what you 
would need from us to make this happen. 

I’d be grateful for any information or direction you could provide, and very happy to chat further if needed. 

Kind regards, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

3

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47F


--- Page 20 ---

Subject:
Location:

Start:
End:
Show Time As:

LinkedIn/EIAT meeting [SEC=OFFICIAL]
Teams link to be sent

Wed 12/03/2025 9:30 AM
Wed 12/03/2025 10:30 AM
Tentative

Recurrence:

(none)

Meeting Status:

Not yet responded

Organiser:
Required Attendees:

EIAT

; Matthew Haigh; 

; 

; 

HI again all, 

Scheduling mee(cid:415)ng for this (cid:415)me as per email.  

Cheers, 

 Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

1

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--- Page 21 ---

Subject:
Location:

Start:
End:
Show Time As:

Microsoft brief for EIAT [SEC=OFFICIAL]
NO - Rapid Response

Wed 22/01/2025 3:00 PM
Wed 22/01/2025 4:00 PM
Tentative

Recurrence:

(none)

Meeting Status:

Not yet responded

Organiser:
Required Attendees:

EIAT

; 

; 

Haigh; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; 
; 

; 
; 

; 

; 
; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; Matt 
; 
; 

Apologies for those receiving this mee(cid:415)ng invita(cid:415)on twice!  

Forwarding this mee(cid:415)ng invite for those that are interested in a brief from US based 

while he is in Canberra. 

If you have a speciﬁc area or topic of interest you would like to hear about, please send your request to the EIAT 
Secretariat by COB Thursday, 9 January 2025 and we will coordinate. 

Kind regards, 

Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) Secretariat) 
Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
DDU Line: 
E: 

 Protected Email: 

1

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--- Page 22 ---

Subject:
Location:

Start:
End:
Show Time As:

Microsoft briefing to EIAT [SEC=OFFICIAL]
AEC Office - 10-12 Mort Street, Canberra ACT 2601; NO - Rapid Response

Mon 23/09/2024 3:00 PM
Mon 23/09/2024 4:00 PM
Tentative

Recurrence:

(none)

Meeting Status:

Not yet responded

Organiser:
Required Attendees:

EIAT
Michael Lynch; 

; 

; 

; 

; 

; EIAT Secretariat; 

; 

; 

; 

; 
; 
; 

; 

; Matt Haigh; 

; 

; 

; 
; 

; 
; 

; 

; 

Optional Attendees:

; 

; 

; 

; 

; 
; 

; 

; 

; 

Good a(cid:332)ernoon EIAT colleagues, 

 from Microso(cid:332)’s Democracy Forward team will be visi(cid:415)ng Canberra on Monday 23 September and 
has oﬀered to provide the EIAT with an in-person brieﬁng. According to the Democracy Forward team, their focus is 
on: 

safeguarding open and secure democra(cid:415)c processes 

 
  promo(cid:415)ng a healthy informa(cid:415)on ecosystem 
  advoca(cid:415)ng for corporate civic responsibility 

This mee(cid:415)ng is op(cid:415)onal for taskforce members and will take the form of a presenta(cid:415)on by 
by roundtable type discussion.  

 followed 

We would appreciate a response to this invita(cid:415)on, including which member/s of your agency will be a(cid:425)ending, by 
COB Wednesday, 18 September. 

Kind regards, 

EIAT Secretariat 
Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
T: 

 M: 

1

s22s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Es47Es 47E


--- Page 23 ---

2


--- Page 24 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:
Attachments:

Categories:

Friday, 24 January 2025 4:31 PM

Defending Democracy Unit; 
Microsoft Democracy Forward | Thank You for Your Engagement
Best Practices for combating abusive media and deepfakes.pdf

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Dear 

 and DDU 

On behalf of 
22nd. The discussions we had with the AEC Cyber Branch, ACSC, the EIAT, and the AEC Execu(cid:415)ve were highly 
valuable and produc(cid:415)ve. 

 I wanted to express our gra(cid:415)tude for the opportunity to meet with you on January 

 and 

As discussed with the Ac(cid:415)ng Commissioner, we will arrange a follow up security brieﬁng in coming months and look 
forward to speaking with your team about content escala(cid:415)on response mechanisms.  

As promised in the Cyber brieﬁng, also sharing some links for more informa(cid:415)on on AccountGuard and Democracy 
Forward: 
Microso(cid:332) AccountGuard 
Democracy Forward - Protec(cid:415)ng Democracy | Microso(cid:332) CSR 

Also sharing the so(cid:332) copy of the deepfake response plan handout we shared.  

We truly value the collabora(cid:415)on with AEC. We look forward to con(cid:415)nuing our partnership and working together to 
protect the integrity of our elec(cid:415)ons in Australia. 

Best  

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 
Mob: 

1

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--- Page 25 ---

B® Microsoft

Best Practices for combating abusive media and
deeptakes

es

Summary

The document is a guide for political campaigns to deal with the threat of abusive or deceptive
media and deepfakes, especially during elections.

@l

Detecting and reporting abusive media
e Educate staff and volunteers on identifying abusive or deceptive media.
e Monitor news and social media for potentially abusive manipulations.

e Document incidents using screenshots and archiving services.

fig a N
, cel
* —

Responding to abusive or deceptive media incidents

e Assess the threat.

Utilize platform tools and policies.

Issue initial statements.

e Engage with social media channels, supporters, allies, and opponents.

Collaborate with news outlets and journalists.

Strategies for preventing abusive or deceptive media
e Adopt content credentialing technologies to verify authenticity.
e Stay informed about platform policies and content moderation tools.

e Maintain credibility and integrity in communication.

ea Leveraging big technology (Microsoft)
| e Create indexed media repositories.
e Establish a “honeypot” and utilize Defender Office 365.
e Utilize Enterprise secure content management for credentialing.

e Employ classified secure access sites for sharing and collaboration.

© Conclusion
e Remain vigilant, prepared, and proactive against abusive or deceptive media and deepfake disinformation.

e Contribute to an informed and resilient public discourse, safeguarding the democratic process and
upholding truth.

IP Microsoft CampaignSuccess@ Microsoft.com


--- Page 26 ---

Introduction Detection

Generative Al has emerged as a transformative {© Education and awareness

technology, unleashing a wave of creativity across .
oY: g y Educate campaign staff and volunteers on

i ins. Whil dbreaki
SEES Sten) (DNs sink emilee eat identifying abusive or deceptive media.

capabilities carry significant potential for misuse, and .
P = oe P Establish transparent processes for

there is widespread concern about the implications of : 2 ‘ :
reporting potentially abusive or deceptive

these advancements on the creation and dissemination . . . ..
manipulations, particularly on less visible

of disinformation. .
platforms or non-English content.

Political elections are especially vulnerable to abusive Encourage vigilance, particularly within

or deceptive media, facilitated by advancements like communities using walled-garden apps like
deepfakes and voice cloning. Generative Al tools WhatsApp and Telegram.
reduce the effort required to create convincing

synthetic content. Political campaigns, regardless of ge Media monitoring

scale, must remain vigilant against these threats. . a
Use Google alerts, media monitoring tools,

As a result, it's critical for campaigns to build a and manual scanning to monitor news and
‘Deep-Fake Response Plan’ to ensure that the social media for abusive or deceptive
organization is prepared in the event of an incident. At content.

Microsoft, we believe it's up to each campaign how

they respond, but we are here to help offer the best B Documenting incidents

guidance/best practices when building this plan.
Correctly record incidents using screenshots

Microsoft is dedicated to taking action to uphold the and archiving services. Public archive
integrity of the electoral process across the globe. In services such as archive.org or archive.today
February 2024, Microsoft played a pivotal role in the can provide credible evidence for

Tech accord to combat deceptive use of Al in 2024 debunking abusive or deceptive media,
elections, a significant initiative that brought together offering verification by third parties such as
the technology sector under a unified banner. Through journalists.

this accord, industry leaders made tangible, voluntary
commitments to safeguard elections scheduled to
occur in over 65 nations worldwide from March to the
end of the year.

FF Microsoft CampaignSuccess@Microsoft.com


--- Page 27 ---

Response

Responding to a abusive or deceptive media incident involves striking a careful balance between alerting the
public and avoiding amplifying the misleading content. Here, we outline seven steps your campaign can take in
response to a abusive or deceptive media attack.

Assess the threat

Detecting abusive or deceptive media is just the beginning; the crucial step is promptly assessing its risk level
and crafting an appropriate response. Neglecting this can lead to the unchecked spread of false narratives,
escalating an already challenging situation. Conversely, an overreaction risks amplifying the content, triggering

the notorious “Streisand effect.”

To start, evaluate the content's potential impact. While a campaign may dislike Al-generated parodies of their
candidate, an aggressive response risks being seen as humorless or suppressing free speech. Objectivity is
critical, though challenging. Reviewing the context—platform, tone, and responses—can clarify whether the

content is meant humorously or as a factual statement.

  

       

e Ask for retraction Activate supporter Activate supporter

ee ee networks to push back networks to push back

« Publiozeement e Consider public e Positive digital
statement messaging

Activate supporter Activate supporter

positive diGial ‘
networks to push back —_ networks to push back ositive digital messaging

Nothing Nothing Nothing

*Credit: “How campaigns can protect themselves from deepfakes, disinformation, and social media manipulation” by Lisa Kaplan,
January 10, 2019, brookings.edu

For content not warranting a serious response, options include ignoring it while monitoring for escalation or
responding in a lighthearted manner, which can turn a negative into a positive. However, if the content crosses
ethical or legal boundaries, swift and unified action is necessary to contain its spread and control the narrative.

In the age of viral misinformation, being proactive is essential. By promptly addressing false claims, you
establish your version of events as the initial narrative, potentially inoculating audiences against subsequent

misinformation.

    

BP Microsoft CampaignSuccess@Microsoft.com


--- Page 28 ---

Utilize platform tools and policies

 

To manage abusive or deceptive content on social platforms effectively, start by familiarizing yourself with each
platform's content moderation policies and tools. Different platforms enforce varying policies, particularly
concerning unlabelled Al-generated content in political contexts.

When you spot content violating these policies, promptly report it using the platform's moderation features,
typically found as a “report” option on posts. However, keep in mind a few key points:

e Even if content is removed, it is likely to be re-uploaded, sometimes in altered forms, necessitating

ongoing monitoring and reporting.

Assign one team member to lead the identification and reporting of incidents of abusive or deceptive content.
Establish a process for regular review of both original posts and any amplified dissemination. Meanwhile, your
campaign team can continue with subsequent response steps. For Top Platform Policies see Appendix

3 issue initial statements

 

When confronted with abusive or deceptive media, initiating an immediate statement is pivotal. This initial
response demands clarity and composure, centering on factual data that directly dismantles the falsehoods
without amplifying the abusive or deceptive content. Broad dissemination of this statement is essential,
spanning all platforms and mediums to encompass every facet of your audience, transcending the point of
origin. For example, a real video of the candidate might be an important response to a deep fake video. The
primary aim is promptly restoring confidence and providing accurate insights, setting the stage for subsequent

meticulous and strategic measures.

4 utilize social media channels

 

Enhance your response strategy by leveraging social media channels effectively. Begin by prioritizing the
platform where the misleading content originated, then broaden your reach across similar platforms. For
example, if the content surfaced on TikTok, extend your response to Instagram due to their shared user base.

Consistency in messaging is key across all platforms, while delivery methods must be adapted to suit each

platform's style and audience demographics.

Engage your audience through interactive tactics such as live video streams or Q&A sessions. Direct interaction
allows for real-time addressing of concerns, empowering you to steer the narrative and effectively counteract

misinformation.

 

FF Microsoft CampaignSuccess@Microsoft.com


--- Page 29 ---

Engage with supporters and allies

 

Don't underestimate the impact of teamwork. Engaging with allies means boosting the right message together.
Encourage allies to share accurate information and issue supportive statements, building a network of truth.

Empower supporters to engage in constructive, fact-driven discussions. Equip them with tools to counter
misinformation effectively. Keep the conversation flowing with your audience by providing regular updates on
developments and campaign actions. This transparency builds trust and reinforces your stance against false

information.

Having your network of surrogates and influencers in place and ready for an incident will save time if one

occurs.

6 JiEngage with opponents

 

Engaging with your campaign's adversaries on the topic of abusive or deceptive media demands strategic
forethought. It's vital to refrain from attributing the creation or spread of abusive or deceptive content to your
opponent unless solid evidence exists. Keep in mind that campaigns lack full control over their supporters, and
baseless accusations may harm your campaign's image and could lead to legal ramifications.

A more prudent approach involves urging your opponent to publicly denounce any abusive or deceptive
content and unite in combating disinformation.

  

ork with news outlets and journalists

Strengthening ties with local media outlets and journalists, particularly within your campaign district, is
paramount long before any abusive or deceptive media incident arises. These established connections facilitate
swift dissemination of your narrative in critical moments. Prioritize engagement with journalists specializing in

detecting and debunking abusive or deceptive media.

When engaging with the news media, prioritize communicating your message directly to your constituents
rather than becoming entangled in national political discourse. Enlisting communication experts can offer
in-depth analysis of abusive or deceptive media, bolstering the credibility of your response.

Effectively presenting your case to journalists and media requires careful organization:
e Establish a timeline of events detailing the encounter with abusive or deceptive media and any campaign
or platform responses.
e Utilize visual aids, such as side-by-side comparisons, to clearly illustrate manipulation.
e Provide credible references directing journalists to verifiable information or original content that refutes
the abusive or deceptive material.
Additionally, incorporating personal anecdotes or testimonials from those impacted by the abusive or
deceptive media can forge emotional connections with the audience, enhancing resonance beyond factual

arguments alone.

 

FF Microsoft CampaignSuccess@Microsoft.com


--- Page 30 ---

Preparation and prevention

Preventing the malicious use of deepfake and generative Al technology presents a significant challenge. While
major commercial platforms have imposed usage restrictions, open-source models and alternative platforms
often lack such controls. To address this, initiatives like the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity
(C2PA), in which Microsoft played an instrumental role, are pioneering technologies enabling creators to
embed digital signatures in media, verifying their authenticity and origin. Microsoft's Content Integrity tool
simplifies credentialing, allowing users to add verifiable signatures to their content. For more information,

contact us at campaignsuccess@microsoft.com

While C2PA doesn't directly prevent the spread of inauthentic content, it enhances preparedness by promoting
verified content, facilitating easier differentiation from abusive or deceptive media. Campaigns can proactively
incorporate content credentialing into their workflows, ensuring all released media contains authentic

signatures.

Additionally, campaigns must stay informed about social media policies and reporting mechanisms for abusive
or deceptive content. Understanding platform nuances is essential for effectively navigating the digital
landscape.

Maintaining credibility is crucial when combating disinformation. Campaigns must uphold integrity and
transparency to preserve their moral standing, as ethical lapses can undermine their ability to confront attacks
convincingly. Upholding ethical practices is paramount for campaigns seeking credibility in the face of

disinformation.

Another effective method for preparing campaigns involves staying abreast of the latest developments and
advancements in the field. This can be achieved by actively engaging with organizations such as Defending
Digital Campaigns, which specialize in safeguarding campaigns against various digital threats and challenges.

Conclusion

To tackle abusive or deceptive media and deepfake disinformation, campaigns and organizations must be
vigilant, prepared, and proactive. By grasping the landscape, readying for potential attacks, educating teams,
and deploying effective legal and communication tactics, you can lessen the impact of these digital deceptions.
Addressing individual incidents and fostering integrity, transparency, and critical thinking within your audience
is crucial. This cultivates a more resilient public discourse, defending against disinformation's spread. Our
strategies must evolve as technology advances to safeguard truth and uphold the democratic process.

BP Microsoft CampaignSuccess@Microsoft.com

yr

/
fs
z


--- Page 31 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Tuesday, 21 January 2025 3:10 PM

; 

RE: Administrative/logistics for tomorrow's meeting [SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

That all sounds great, thank you.  

Responses in line.  

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 
Mob: 

From: 
Sent: Tuesday, 21 January 2025 2:09 PM 
To:
Cc: 
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Administrative/logistics for tomorrow's meeting [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi again 

A couple of ques(cid:415)ons/points in prepara(cid:415)on for your visit tomorrow: 

  Will 

 (or you) need access to the AEC’s Wi-Fi? I think this would be very useful for 

 thank you. I 

can hotspot if I need internet.  

  Teams link for the EIAT mee(cid:415)ng at 3pm is below. Noted with thanks 
 

 on Signal so you can either message us when you are 

I will invite you to a group (with myself and 
ready to come into the building or contact us on one of the following numbers: Noted with thanks. I am on 
Signal – 0466 221 283 
o  DDU group line 
o  Skye desk phone 
o  Tanya desk phone 
o 

If all else fails, the security guards at the front should be able to help. You will need to check in with 
them in any case at the beginning of the day. 

 

 in rela(cid:415)on to your kind oﬀer to extend our mee(cid:415)ng to 4.30pm, poten(cid:415)ally to run over some scenarios, 

we will be sending a reminder email to TF a(cid:425)endees this a(cid:332)ernoon and will let them know they are 
welcome to stay on un(cid:415)l 4.30pm if they are available.  

o  The TF agencies are currently reviewing a dra(cid:332) of a proposed set of scenarios the DDU has put 
together, and these are due to be circulated to pla(cid:414)orms (including Microso(cid:332)) in the next few 
weeks. To avoid confusion, I might suggest using the extra (cid:415)me for round table type discussion and 
ques(cid:415)ons – I think we will have plenty to keep us busy in this regard! Great, we will plan to stay 
un(cid:415)l 4:30 and I will talk to 
 tomorrow about having some scenarios ready to discuss if the 
conversa(cid:415)on goes that way. He is very experienced and running these sessions, so won’t be a 
problem to do “on the ﬂy” so to speak. 

1

s22s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Fs47F


--- Page 32 ---

Microsoft Teams Need help?  
Join the meeting now  - scheduled for 22 January 2025 @3pm to 4.30pm. 
Meeting ID: 
Passcode: 

Dial in by phone  

Find a local number  
Phone conference ID: 

Cheers, 

# Australia, Sydney  

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone:

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Tuesday, 21 January 2025 11:38 AM 
To: 
Cc: 

Subject: RE: Suggested change to Microsoft/AEC meeting schedule on Wednesday, 22 January [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

Conﬁrming there will be a Teams link available for use in the room. 

Kind regards 

 | Executive Officer to the Acting Electoral Commissioner 

Executive Leadership Team 
Australian Electoral Commission 
T: 

2

s47Es47Es47Es47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47F


--- Page 33 ---

From: 
Sent: Tuesday, 21 January 2025 11:28 AM 
To: 
Cc: 

Subject: RE: Suggested change to Microsoft/AEC meeting schedule on Wednesday, 22 January 
[SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

 and 

Given the topics and audience, 
teams link from the room.  

Best 

 will prepare a few slides to present if we can ensure he can connect up to a 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 
Mob: 

From: 
Sent: Monday, 20 January 2025 4:47 PM 
To: 
Cc: 

Subject: RE: Suggested change to Microsoft/AEC meeting schedule on Wednesday, 22 January [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Thanks everyone. That change is noted with thanks.  

 and I will a(cid:425)end in person, with members of the AEC Account Team to also a(cid:425)end. I am conﬁrming who this 

will be but will ensure we can cover oﬀ on the topics outlined below.  

We will s(cid:415)ll come along at 11 for the mee(cid:415)ng with the Cyber Branch, then can take 
checked in for the 1:30 start.  

 for lunch to be back and 

Looking forward to these discussions.  

Best 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 
Mob: 

3

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47F


--- Page 34 ---

From: 
Sent: Monday, 20 January 2025 4:34 PM 
To: 
Cc: 

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Suggested change to Microsoft/AEC meeting schedule on Wednesday, 22 January 
[SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

 and 

Thanks for conﬁrming these details, the calendar invite has now been updated to reﬂect the combined mee(cid:415)ng. 

The mee(cid:415)ng (cid:415)me will be 1:30pm Canberra (cid:415)me. 

Kind regards 

 | Executive Officer to the Acting Electoral Commissioner 

Executive Leadership Team 
Australian Electoral Commission 
T: 

From:
Sent: Monday, 20 January 2025 4:23 PM 
To: 
Cc: 

Subject: Suggested change to Microsoft/AEC meeting schedule on Wednesday, 22 January [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

 and 

Just wanted to close the loop on a suggested change to the schedule of Microso(cid:332) mee(cid:415)ngs here on 
Wednesday. If this has already been addressed, then please disregard. 

Given it has been suggested that the mee(cid:415)ngs with the CIOD (Tania Wilson’s area) and the EC (Jeﬀ) be 
combined into one mee(cid:415)ng for the Execu(cid:415)ve Leadership Team (ELT), I just wanted to make sure 

 and 

 had enough (cid:415)me to prepare/make adjustments and to conﬁrm what (cid:415)me the combined mee(cid:415)ng 

would take place. 

If the mee(cid:415)ngs are to be combined, then the agenda would include exis(cid:415)ng items prepared for the CIO 
and the following items that the EC is interested in: 

  Executive level briefing on Cyber threat landscape (MTAC/MSTIC insights) 
  Synthetic media - including AI and the practical application of detecting / content provenance + 

credentialing / Microsoft's 'AI for good lab' initiative. 

4

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--- Page 35 ---

  Mis/disinformation and Microsoft's efforts in this space, especially media and digital literacy.  
Insights from elections in other geographies, for example major common themes / concerns  
 

Potentially in addition to some, or all, of the following items suggested by 

 (time permitting): 

  support for electoral preparations from the technical/customer support perspective;  
  content credentialling and pilot next steps; 
  synthetic media and AI related harms, including advice on how to respond to incidents 
  overview of the Democracy Forward visit program including training for political campaigns and 

journalists; 

  update on implementation of the Tech Accord (as per correspondence this month)  
  any other topics of interest 

 – if not already aware, please let us know if any issues with this change.  

 and 

 – let me know if there is anything I can do to help. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

951 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies.  If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies.  If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

5

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47E


--- Page 36 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Friday, 7 March 2025 4:13 PM

RE: Follow up from this morning and question about Microsoft US [SEC=OFFICIAL]

; Defending Democracy Unit; 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

In response to the query below, Microsoft is currently working on our response to subpoena, consistent with our 
commitment to compliance with local laws.  

I hope you and the team enjoy the weekend.  

Best 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, 5 March 2025 3:44 PM 
To: 
Cc: 
Unit <
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Follow up from this morning and question about Microsoft US [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

; Defending Democracy 

Hi 

Following up on our conversa(cid:415)on from earlier, it looks like our Communica(cid:415)ons colleagues have been working on 
this, and I believe 

 may now already have spoken to you. Let me know if not and I’d be happy to chase up again. 

Also, not sure if this is informa(cid:415)on you are able to share, but we are aware of Microso(cid:332) being one of the recipients 
of a subpoena from the US House Judiciary Chairman Jordan Subpoenas Big Tech for Informa(cid:415)on on Foreign 
Censorship of American Speech | House Judiciary Commi(cid:425)ee Republicans and would like to know if you can tell us 
the due date.  

As you know, with the elec(cid:415)on coming up, it would be good to understand (cid:415)melines and therefore be prepared if 
we are asked ques(cid:415)ons once informa(cid:415)on is released. There are plenty of other things we can be doing if it won’t be 
an issue un(cid:415)l a(cid:332)er the elec(cid:415)on! 

Happy to discuss if that’s easier and understand if you can’t answer. 

1

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--- Page 37 ---

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 
 | DDU Group Line: 
My hours are 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday 

 | Protected email:

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies.  If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

2

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47F


--- Page 38 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Monday, 10 February 2025 9:03 AM

; Defending Democracy Unit

Re: For action: LinkedIn meeting placeholder and list of AEC names to block from AI 
tools [SEC=OFFICIAL:Sensitive]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Thanks 

Adding my colleague 
that week or the following would work well. I think it would be helpful for us both to attend.  

 from LinkedIn. I am on leave on 21 February but another day 

I will pass on those names to Dave to action - thank you.  

Best 

Get Outlook for Android 

From: 
Sent: Monday, February 10, 2025 8:58:34 AM 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: [EXTERNAL] For action: LinkedIn meeting placeholder and list of AEC names to block from AI tools 
[SEC=OFFICIAL:Sensitive]  

; Defending Democracy Unit 

Good morning 

I hope this email finds you well! 

Following up on a couple of items. First, setting up a meeting with LinkedIn reps. I have put a placeholder in Matt’s 
calendar for 1:00 to 2:00pm Friday, 21 February 2025 which I will send through shortly. Please let me know if this 
works, otherwise can look for other times that are suitable. 

Also, we have compiled a list of names we think would be prudent to have actioned so that their likeness cannot be 
reproduced using Microsoft’s AI tools. List as follows. 

Name 
Tom Rogers 
Jeff Pope 

Kath Gleeson 
Michael Lynch 
Thomas Ryan 
Rachael Spalding 

Role/position 
Former Electoral Commissioner 
a/g Electoral Commissioner 
a/g Deputy Electoral Commissioner and National 
Election Manager 
FAC EIOG and National Incident Manager 
FAC ETG 
FAC Enabling and Regulation Group 

1

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--- Page 39 ---

Tania Wilson FAC Chief Information Officer Division

ee
RM NSW/ACTState Manager
RW icState Manager
RM State Manager
RW WAState Manager
RW | SAState Manager
RM | TASState Manager
SN NT TerritoryManager
a
| Principal Media Advisor
SR | Media spokesperson
| Appeared in AEC video about postal voting
MM Media spokesperson

 

Please let me know if you need any further info.
Cheers,

| Assistant Director
Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch
Australian Electoral Commission

Phone: SEER | 00U Group Line: EMI | Protected ri

My hours are 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday

—T-Te(=\ 6 n 4 Cc.) AEC

 

100,000 paid jobs.
Work before, on and after the day. Ceara)

pe Re

 

DISCLAIMER:

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.


--- Page 40 ---

From:
Sent:
To:

Thursday, 16 January 2025 5:14 PM

: AEC MSFT engagements on Wed  [SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Thanks 

 – let’s use the other chain to avoid confusion, will close this one out!  

From: 
Sent: Thursday, 16 January 2025 5:13 PM 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: For advice: AEC MSFT engagements on Wed [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Thank you very much for forwarding this through, we are very synced by the looks of it!  

For your reference, 
informa(cid:415)on from my earlier email (as requested below) and send to you tomorrow. More than happy to 
call tomorrow or on Monday to discuss anything further. Thank you again for all of your help.  

 is s(cid:415)ll away and will be back this coming Monday. I will work to add any missing 

I hope your travels are safe and enjoyable 

Kind Regards, 

 (She/Her) | Project Officer  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
DDU Line: 
Email: 

From: 
Sent: Thursday, 16 January 2025 4:57 PM 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: RE: For advice: AEC MSFT engagements on Wed  

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

1

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--- Page 41 ---

Our emails passed in the ether! Let me review yours now, but sharing mine below. 

Best 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From: 
Sent: Thursday, 16 January 2025 4:15 PM 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: For advice: AEC MSFT engagements on Wed  

Hi 

We hope you are well – happy new year!  

’s visit is fast approaching. I have included him at cc so we can reﬁne some details on desired content for the 

engagements with AEC on Wednesday.  

1)  Brieﬁng with AEC Cyber Branch with ASD and ACSC 

a. 

 has been working with our colleagues in the Microso(cid:332) Threat Analysis Centre (MTAC) and the 
Microso(cid:332) Threat Intelligence Centre (MSTIC) on latest shareable threat insights which he will share.  

 can also share the latest on cybersecurity best prac(cid:415)ce and other technical supports. 

 from MSTIC, 

, will also join this mee(cid:415)ng.  

b.  Our colleague 
c. 
d. 
e. 

Is there anything in par(cid:415)cular that you would like to cover? 
Is it possible to share the list of a(cid:425)endees? 

2)  Brieﬁng with the AEC Ac(cid:415)ng Commissioner  

a.  We are keen for your advice on how the Commissioner would like to use this (cid:415)me and who else will 

be a(cid:425)ending.  

b.  As you know from our most recent engagements with Democracy Forward the last few months of 

2024, there is a lot that week can cover and want to ensure we are prepared to meet the 
Commissioners interests.  
c.  Some suggested topics include: 

i.  execu(cid:415)ve level brieﬁng on the cyber threat landscape (MTAC/MSTIC insights);  
ii.  support for electoral prepara(cid:415)ons from the technical/customer support perspec(cid:415)ve;  
iii.  content creden(cid:415)alling and pilot next steps; 
iv.  synthe(cid:415)c media and AI related harms, including advice on how to respond to incidents 
v.  overview of the Democracy Forward visit program including training for poli(cid:415)cal campaigns 

and journalists; 

vi.  update on implementa(cid:415)on of the Tech Accord (as per correspondence this month)  
vii.  any other topics of interest 

3)  Brieﬁng with EIAT 

a.  As per 
b. 

’s visit, this discussion can be shaped as it best suits the interests of the Taskforce.  

It would be great to have a list of a(cid:425)endees, or at least Departments/Agencies that will be 
represented.  

2

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--- Page 42 ---

c.  Some suggested topics include: 

i.  Execu(cid:415)ve level brieﬁng of the cyber threat landscape 
ii.  Insights on US elec(cid:415)on, especially ﬁnal months of campaign (update since 
iii.  Reﬂec(cid:415)ons on AI related harms and impact on elec(cid:415)ons across 2024 
iv.  Overview of the Democracy Forward visit program including training for poli(cid:415)cal campaigns 

’s visit) 

and journalists 

v.  update on implementa(cid:415)on of the Tech Accord (as per correspondence this month)  
vi.  any other topics of interest 

d.  While we only have an hour, if there are any other scenario based exercises or planning that we can 

prepare to support the EIAT with please let us know.  

i.  We would have (cid:415)me in Ethan’s program to extend this mee(cid:415)ng to 90 mins to accommodate 

this if that was of interest.  

4)  Brieﬁng with Defending Democracy Branch 

a.  You may have had enough of us by the end of the day, but we have (cid:415)me following the EIAT for a 

short mee(cid:415)ng with your Branch if there is anything outstanding or more opera(cid:415)onal that you would 
like to cover while we are there. 

b.  Please feel free to schedule 30 mins if that is something that would be valuable. We could also ﬁt 

this in immediately before the Cyber Branch mee(cid:415)ng if a pre-brief in person was useful. 

I have not included the CIO mee(cid:415)ng above, which is scheduled and being led by our account team who will join 

 for that mee(cid:415)ng.  

I am oﬄine tomorrow but happy to connect by phone on Monday. That being said, if you can, a short wri(cid:425)en 
response would be helpful for 

’s visibility as he ﬂies over the weekend.  

We are looking forward to these engagements. 

Best 

 (she/her) 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies.  If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

3

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F


--- Page 43 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Good morning both, 

Monday, 28 October 2024 12:28 PM

Defending Democracy Unit
RE: For information: New MTAC Report on US election [SEC=OFFICIAL]

Thanks so much for the heads up, will pass along accordingly. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 
 | DDU Group Line: 
My hours are 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Monday, 28 October 2024 12:17 PM 
To: 
Subject: Re: For information: New MTAC Report on US election 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hope that’s helpful! 

From: 
Sent: Sunday, October 27, 2024 9:10:13 PM 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: For information: New MTAC Report on US election  

1

s 22s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 22s 22


--- Page 44 ---

Hi 

The latest in the MTAC US Election series was released last week: As the U.S. election nears, Russia, Iran and China 
step up influence efforts - Microsoft On the Issues 

It may be of interest to EIAT members. 

Best 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Affairs 

www.microsoft.com 

2

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F


--- Page 45 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Subject:

Monday, 6 January 2025 3:10 PM

RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Thank you so much 

 (she/her) 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From: 
Sent: Monday, 6 January 2025 1:36 PM 
To: 
Cc:

efending Democracy Unit 

; 

Subject: RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Happy New Year everyone! 

I am wondering if you could please re-send the placeholder for the Cyber Briefing at 11-12pm on Wed 22 January?  

 we are now planning to have 

 in Canberra on Thursday 23 January also. While it would be my 

preference to have all the AEC and related meetings on 22 January, it does give us some more space to fit in the 
various engagements, including time with EIMB. 

Best 

 (she/her) 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From: 
Sent: Friday, 20 December 2024 5:30 PM 
To: 
Cc: 

; Defending Democracy Unit 

; 

1

s 47Fs 22s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47F


--- Page 46 ---

Subject: Re: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

That sounds great and yes please to inviting ASD and ACSC!  

please note the cyber meeting timing as we also work with CIO team!  

Get Outlook for Android 

From: 
Sent: Friday, December 20, 2024 2:49:07 PM 
To: 
Cc:

Defending Democracy Unit 

; 

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL]  

Hi again 

Our Cyber team have also expressed interest in getting a brief from 
invitation to our ASD/Australian Cyber Security Centre colleagues). I am happy to forgo an EIMB brief to allow time 
for this (we can pick up these topics via an online meeting another time?). 

 (and I could potentially extend the 

Our Cyber team Director (
 cc’d) will pull together a few dot points which his team would be keen to hear 
about. I have put in a placeholder for 11am to 12pm for this which I’ll send shortly, but please let me know if this 
isn’t suitable. We’re certainly making 

 earn his keep! 

Lastly, yes would be good to get LinkedIn contacts from you and we will reach out to them early in the new year. 

Cheers, 

 Evans| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 
 | DDU Group Line: 
My hours are 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Friday, 20 December 2024 10:52 AM 
To:
Cc: 

efending Democracy Unit 

; 

Subject: RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Thanks 

 that is great. We should be able to cover all those topics.  

2

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47F


--- Page 47 ---

Do you want a separate half an hour for your team with 

We could do either side of the other meetings, depending on when we see Tania and team – 
setting this one up. 

 is kindly 

Let me know if you need contacts at LinkedIn and I can connect you. 

Best 

 (she/her) 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Affairs 

www.microsoft.com 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, 18 December 2024 5:52 PM 
To: 
Cc:

; Defending Democracy Unit 

; 

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

Thanks for your email, 22 January is looking good for us (always with the caveat that it depends on whether the 
election has been called!). It would be great to hear from 

 in person. 

I have reached out to the a/g EC’s office, and he is amenable to a meeting with 
shortly for 1.30pm to 2.30pm on 22 January.  Let me know if this isn’t suitable.  

 – I’ll forward a meeting invite 

For our team here in the EIMB we would be interested in hearing about: 

synthetic media (including AI and the practical application of detecting/content provenance)  
 
  mis/disinformation and Microsoft’s efforts in this space, especially media and digital literacy 
 

in addition to some of our EIAT colleagues, we have an area in the AEC who would be interested in hearing 
about regional specific insights since the AEC works directly with EMBs in the Pacific to provide support 

Probably not for 22 January, but it would also be good to line up a check-in with LinkedIn reps some time before the 
next election. We can sort that out in the new year if that suits. 

I will also send you a meeting invite for an EIAT brief on 22 January and get back to before I go on leave for next 
week with potential topics. 

Lastly, I have sent an email to the CIO’s team to make sure they are aware of your visit (not sure if you have also 
contacted them separately). Let me know if you would like any assistance in this space. 

Talk soon, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 

3

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F


--- Page 48 ---

Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Friday, 13 December 2024 9:18 AM 
To: 
Cc:

Subject: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

As foreshadowed when we saw you a couple of weeks ago, I am delighted that 
Forward team will be visiting Canberra on 22 January. You met 
Rogers. He works alongside 
world.  

 and 

 on the call we had with Commissioner 

 on our support for election commissions around the 

 from our Democracy 

I am keen to work with you on what engagements the AEC would find useful. My early ideas are: 

  Training for AEC team: ideally a 90 mins session and we can bring in as many folks as you would like. We 
 and team run trainings for election officials globally on AI and 

can work with you on a program, but 
synthetic media, dis and misinformation, cyber security etc.  

  Briefing for EIAT: pick up where 

 left off with our insights post-US election, update on Au and regional 

specific insights, any other topics of interest to the group. We could also conduct some training for this 
group if we thought that would be useful.  

  Meeting with CIO and team: again, picking up where 

 left off and working with our account team and 

AEC on technical support for the election.  

  1:1 with Acting Commissioner: if this would be a useful engagement. 

It would be great to do some hinking in coming days so I can start to build 

’s program this side of Christmas. 

Also, I believe we were waiting on some follow up from your side following our meeting with Commissioner Rogers 
– please do let us know where this is up to and how we can help. 

Looking forward to our continued engagement.  

Thanks 

(she/her) 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Affairs 

www.microsoft.com 

4

s 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47F


--- Page 49 ---

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies.  If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies.  If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

5


--- Page 50 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:

Subject:

Monday, 6 January 2025 1:36 PM

RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL]

 Defending Democracy Unit; 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Happy New Year everyone! 

I am wondering if you could please re-send the placeholder for the Cyber Briefing at 11-12pm on Wed 22 January?  

 we are now planning to have 

 in Canberra on Thursday 23 January also. While it would be my 

preference to have all the AEC and related meetings on 22 January, it does give us some more space to fit in the 
various engagements, including time with EIMB. 

Best 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From:
Sent: Friday, 20 December 2024 5:30 PM 
To: 
Cc: 

 Defending Democracy Unit ;

Subject: Re: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

That sounds great and yes please to inviting ASD and ACSC!  

please note the cyber meeting timing as we also work with CIO team!  

Get Outlook for Android 

From: 
Sent: Friday, December 20, 2024 2:49:07 PM 
To: 
Cc: 

 Defending Democracy Unit 

; 

1

s 22s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs47Fs47Fs 47F


--- Page 51 ---

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL]  

Hi again 

Our Cyber team have also expressed interest in getting a brief from 
invitation to our ASD/Australian Cyber Security Centre colleagues). I am happy to forgo an EIMB brief to allow time 
for this (we can pick up these topics via an online meeting another time?). 

 (and I could potentially extend the 

Our Cyber team Director (
 cc’d) will pull together a few dot points which his team would be keen to hear 
about. I have put in a placeholder for 11am to 12pm for this which I’ll send shortly, but please let me know if this 
isn’t suitable. We’re certainly making 

 earn his keep! 

Lastly, yes would be good to get LinkedIn contacts from you and we will reach out to them early in the new year. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone:
 | DDU Group Line:
My hours are 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Friday, 20 December 2024 10:52 AM 
To:
Cc: 

 Defending Democracy Unit 

;

Subject: RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Thanks 

 that is great. We should be able to cover all those topics.  

Do you want a separate half an hour for your team with 

We could do either side of the other meetings, depending on when we see Tania and team – 
setting this one up. 

 is kindly 

Let me know if you need contacts at LinkedIn and I can connect you. 

Best 

 (she/her) 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Affairs 

2

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F


--- Page 52 ---

www.microsoft.com 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, 18 December 2024 5:52 PM 
To: 
Cc:

 Defending Democracy Unit 

; 

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

Thanks for your email, 22 January is looking good for us (always with the caveat that it depends on whether the 
election has been called!). It would be great to hear from 

 in person. 

I have reached out to the a/g EC’s office, and he is amenable to a meeting with Ethan – I’ll forward a meeting invite 
shortly for 1.30pm to 2.30pm on 22 January. Let me know if this isn’t suitable.  

For our team here in the EIMB we would be interested in hearing about: 

synthetic media (including AI and the practical application of detecting/content provenance)  
 
  mis/disinformation and Microsoft’s efforts in this space, especially media and digital literacy 
 

in addition to some of our EIAT colleagues, we have an area in the AEC who would be interested in hearing 
about regional specific insights since the AEC works directly with EMBs in the Pacific to provide support 

Probably not for 22 January, but it would also be good to line up a check-in with LinkedIn reps some time before the 
next election. We can sort that out in the new year if that suits. 

I will also send you a meeting invite for an EIAT brief on 22 January and get back to before I go on leave for next 
week with potential topics. 

Lastly, I have sent an email to the CIO’s team to make sure they are aware of your visit (not sure if you have also 
contacted them separately). Let me know if you would like any assistance in this space. 

Talk soon, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email:

From: 
Sent: Friday, 13 December 2024 9:18 AM 
To: 
Cc: 

Subject: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan 

3

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47E


--- Page 53 ---

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

As foreshadowed when we saw you a couple of weeks ago, I am delighted that 
Forward team will be visiting Canberra on 22 January. You met 
Rogers. He works alongside 
world.  

 and 

 on the call we had with Commissioner 

 on our support for election commissions around the 

 from our Democracy 

I am keen to work with you on what engagements the AEC would find useful. My early ideas are: 

  Training for AEC team: ideally a 90 mins session and we can bring in as many folks as you would like. We 
 and team run trainings for election officials globally on AI and 

can work with you on a program, but 
synthetic media, dis and misinformation, cyber security etc.  

  Briefing for EIAT: pick up where 

 left off with our insights post-US election, update on Au and regional 

specific insights, any other topics of interest to the group. We could also conduct some training for this 
group if we thought that would be useful.  

  Meeting with CIO and team: again, picking up where 

 left off and working with our account team and 

AEC on technical support for the election.  

  1:1 with Acting Commissioner: if this would be a useful engagement. 

It would be great to do some hinking in coming days so I can start to build 

 program this side of Christmas. 

Also, I believe we were waiting on some follow up from your side following our meeting with Commissioner Rogers 
– please do let us know where this is up to and how we can help. 

Looking forward to our continued engagement.  

Thanks 

 (she/her) 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Affairs 

www.microsoft.com 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

4

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F


--- Page 54 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:

Subject:

Friday, 20 December 2024 5:30 PM

Re: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL]

 Defending Democracy Unit; 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

That sounds great and yes please to inviting ASD and ACSC!  

please note the cyber meeting timing as we also work with CIO team!  

Get Outlook for Android 

From: 
Sent: Friday, December 20, 2024 2:49:07 PM 
To: 
Cc: 

 ; Defending Democracy Unit ; 

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL]  
Hi again 
Our Cyber team have also expressed interest in getting a brief from 
invitation to our ASD/Australian Cyber Security Centre colleagues). I am happy to forgo an EIMB brief to allow time 
for this (we can pick up these topics via an online meeting another time?). 
Our Cyber team Director (
 cc’d) will pull together a few dot points which his team would be keen to hear 
about. I have put in a placeholder for 11am to 12pm for this which I’ll send shortly, but please let me know if this 
isn’t suitable. We’re certainly making 
Lastly, yes would be good to get LinkedIn contacts from you and we will reach out to them early in the new year. 
Cheers, 

 (and I could potentially extend the 

 earn his keep! 

 Evans| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Friday, 20 December 2024 10:52 AM 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL] 
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  
Thanks 

, that is great. We should be able to cover all those topics.  

 Defending Democracy Unit ; 

Do you want a separate half an hour for your team with 

?  

1

s 22s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F


--- Page 55 ---

We could do either side of the other meetings, depending on when we see Tania and team – 
setting this one up. 
Let me know if you need contacts at LinkedIn and I can connect you. 
Best 

 is kindly 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Affairs 

www.microsoft.com 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, 18 December 2024 5:52 PM 
To: 
Cc:

 Defending Democracy Unit 

; 

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL] 
Hi 
Thanks for your email, 22 January is looking good for us (always with the caveat that it depends on whether the 
election has been called!). It would be great to hear from 
I have reached out to the a/g EC’s office, and he is amenable to a meeting with 
shortly for 1.30pm to 2.30pm on 22 January. Let me know if this isn’t suitable.  
For our team here in the EIMB we would be interested in hearing about: 

 in person. 

 – I’ll forward a meeting invite 

synthetic media (including AI and the practical application of detecting/content provenance)  
 
  mis/disinformation and Microsoft’s efforts in this space, especially media and digital literacy 
 

in addition to some of our EIAT colleagues, we have an area in the AEC who would be interested in hearing 
about regional specific insights since the AEC works directly with EMBs in the Pacific to provide support 

Probably not for 22 January, but it would also be good to line up a check-in with LinkedIn reps some time before the 
next election. We can sort that out in the new year if that suits. 
I will also send you a meeting invite for an EIAT brief on 22 January and get back to before I go on leave for next 
week with potential topics. 
Lastly, I have sent an email to the CIO’s team to make sure they are aware of your visit (not sure if you have also 
contacted them separately). Let me know if you would like any assistance in this space. 
Talk soon, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Friday, 13 December 2024 9:18 AM 
To:
Cc: 

Subject: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan 
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  
Hi 

2

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F


--- Page 56 ---

As foreshadowed when we saw you a couple of weeks ago, I am delighted that 
Forward team will be visiting Canberra on 22 January. You met Ethan on the call we had with Commissioner 
Rogers. He works alongside 
world.  
I am keen to work with you on what engagements the AEC would find useful. My early ideas are: 

 on our support for election commissions around the 

 from our Democracy 

 and 

  Training for AEC team: ideally a 90 mins session and we can bring in as many folks as you would like. We 
 and team run trainings for election officials globally on AI and 

can work with you on a program, but 
synthetic media, dis and misinformation, cyber security etc.  

  Briefing for EIAT: pick up where 

 left off with our insights post-US election, update on Au and regional 

specific insights, any other topics of interest to the group. We could also conduct some training for this 
group if we thought that would be useful.  

  Meeting with CIO and team: again, picking up where 

 left off and working with our account team and 

AEC on technical support for the election.  

  1:1 with Acting Commissioner: if this would be a useful engagement. 

It would be great to do some hinking in coming days so I can start to build 
Also, I believe we were waiting on some follow up from your side following our meeting with Commissioner Rogers 
– please do let us know where this is up to and how we can help. 
Looking forward to our continued engagement.  

 program this side of Christmas. 

Thanks 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Affairs 

www.microsoft.com 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

3

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs47F


--- Page 57 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:

Subject:

Hi again 

Friday, 20 December 2024 2:49 PM
Kate Seward (CELA)

 Defending Democracy Unit; 

RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL]

Our Cyber team have also expressed interest in ge(cid:427)ng a brief from 
invita(cid:415)on to our ASD/Australian Cyber Security Centre colleagues). I am happy to forgo an EIMB brief to allow (cid:415)me 
for this (we can pick up these topics via an online mee(cid:415)ng another (cid:415)me?). 

 (and I could poten(cid:415)ally extend the 

 cc’d) will pull together a few dot points which his team would be keen to hear 
Our Cyber team Director (
about. I have put in a placeholder for 11am to 12pm for this which I’ll send shortly, but please let me know if this 
isn’t suitable. We’re certainly making 

 earn his keep! 

Lastly, yes would be good to get LinkedIn contacts from you and we will reach out to them early in the new year. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 
 | DDU Group Line: 
My hours are 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Friday, 20 December 2024 10:52 AM 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: RE: Microso(cid:332) Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

; Defending Democracy Unit ; 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Thanks 

 that is great. We should be able to cover all those topics.  

Do you want a separate half an hour for your team with 

We could do either side of the other mee(cid:415)ngs, depending on when we see Tania and team – 
se(cid:427)ng this one up. 

 is kindly 

Let me know if you need contacts at LinkedIn and I can connect you. 

Best 

1

s 22s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F


--- Page 58 ---

(she/her) 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, 18 December 2024 5:52 PM 
To: 
Cc:

 Defending Democracy Unit 

; 

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Microso(cid:332) Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

Thanks for your email, 22 January is looking good for us (always with the caveat that it depends on whether the 
elec(cid:415)on has been called!). It would be great to hear from 

 in person. 

I have reached out to the a/g EC’s oﬃce, and he is amenable to a mee(cid:415)ng with 
shortly for 1.30pm to 2.30pm on 22 January. Let me know if this isn’t suitable.  

 – I’ll forward a mee(cid:415)ng invite 

For our team here in the EIMB we would be interested in hearing about: 

 
synthe(cid:415)c media (including AI and the prac(cid:415)cal applica(cid:415)on of detec(cid:415)ng/content provenance)  
  mis/disinforma(cid:415)on and Microso(cid:332)’s eﬀorts in this space, especially media and digital literacy 
 

in addi(cid:415)on to some of our EIAT colleagues, we have an area in the AEC who would be interested in hearing 
about regional speciﬁc insights since the AEC works directly with EMBs in the Paciﬁc to provide support 

Probably not for 22 January, but it would also be good to line up a check-in with LinkedIn reps some (cid:415)me before the 
next elec(cid:415)on. We can sort that out in the new year if that suits. 

I will also send you a mee(cid:415)ng invite for an EIAT brief on 22 January and get back to before I go on leave for next 
week with poten(cid:415)al topics. 

Lastly, I have sent an email to the CIO’s team to make sure they are aware of your visit (not sure if you have also 
contacted them separately). Let me know if you would like any assistance in this space. 

Talk soon, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Friday, 13 December 2024 9:18 AM 

2

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--- Page 59 ---

To: 
Cc:

Subject: Microso(cid:332) Democracy Forward: Canberra, Wed 22 Jan 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

As foreshadowed when we saw you a couple of weeks ago, I am delighted that 
Forward team will be visi(cid:415)ng Canberra on 22 January. You met 
Rogers. He works alongside 
world.  

 and 

 on the call we had with Commissioner 

 on our support for elec(cid:415)on commissions around the 

 from our Democracy 

I am keen to work with you on what engagements the AEC would ﬁnd useful. My early ideas are: 

- 

Training for AEC team: ideally a 90 mins session and we can bring in as many folks as you would like. We 
can work with you on a program, but 
 and team run trainings for elec(cid:415)on oﬃcials globally on AI and 
synthe(cid:415)c media, dis and misinforma(cid:415)on, cyber security etc.  

-  Brieﬁng for EIAT: pick up where 

 le(cid:332) oﬀ with our insights post-US elec(cid:415)on, update on Au and regional 

speciﬁc insights, any other topics of interest to the group. We could also conduct some training for this 
group if we thought that would be useful.  

-  Mee(cid:415)ng with CIO and team: again, picking up where 

 le(cid:332) oﬀ and working with our account team and 

AEC on technical support for the elec(cid:415)on.  
1:1 with Ac(cid:415)ng Commissioner: if this would be a useful engagement. 

- 

It would be great to do some hinking in coming days so I can start to build 

 program this side of Christmas. 

Also, I believe we were wai(cid:415)ng on some follow up from your side following our mee(cid:415)ng with Commissioner Rogers –
please do let us know where this is up to and how we can help. 

Looking forward to our con(cid:415)nued engagement.  

Thanks 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

3

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--- Page 60 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:

Subject:

Hi 

Defending Democracy Unit 
Thursday, 26 September 2024 2:44 PM

Defending Democracy Unit; 

RE: Microsoft Democracy Forward: thank you

Thanks for ge(cid:427)ng in touch and for providing those documents. I’ve forwarded them to a(cid:425)endees and will let you 
know if there are any follow up ques(cid:415)ons. 

It was good to have 
obtained really useful insights. We also hope 

 enjoyed his (cid:415)me in Australia! 

 here in person to present- we agree that there was some good discussion and a(cid:425)endees 

There was interest in ge(cid:427)ng further informa(cid:415)on about the MSTIC cybersecurity insights, so I will wait to hear back 
from you. In the mean(cid:415)me, I’ll let you know if there was anything further to follow up a(cid:332)er we have had a chance to 
review our notes. 

Kind regards, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, September 25, 2024 2:19 PM 
To: 
Cc: Defending Democracy Unit ; 
Subject: Microsoft Democracy Forward: thank you 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Dear 

 and the Defending Democracy Team 

Thank you for bringing together members of the Electoral Integrity and Assurance Taskforce for a discussion with 
 from Microso(cid:332)’s Democracy Forward team during his visit to Australia. We very much appreciate 

you arranging and hos(cid:415)ng this brieﬁng.  

We highly value our engagement with the Taskforce and we hope that this brieﬁng was of value to members. We 
certainly found the discussion to be produc(cid:415)ve and insigh(cid:414)ul; we appreciated the contribu(cid:415)on from the AEC and 
others around the table as we think deeply and collabora(cid:415)vely about preparing for the next federal elec(cid:415)on and 
incorpora(cid:415)ng lessons learned from global elec(cid:415)ons in 2024. 

1

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--- Page 61 ---

As promised, I have a(cid:425)ached fact sheets on Democracy Forward and content creden(cid:415)alling for sharing with the 
group. Please also ﬁnd here the Microso(cid:332) Threat Analysis Centre’s recent report on Russian interference in the 
Harris campaign in the US. In this ar(cid:415)cle you will ﬁnd links to other MTAC repor(cid:415)ng on the US elec(cid:415)ons. We are s(cid:415)ll 
working on how best to share the cybersecurity insights from MSTIC (Microso(cid:332) Threat Intelligence Community) that 
Dave discussed. We will come back to you. 

No(cid:415)ng the discussion on how best to protect the electoral roll, I have asked 

 to work with our colleague 

, the AEC Account Execu(cid:415)ve, on next steps with the CIOD.  

Again, thank you for the partnership on these important issues. Please let us know how we can assist the Taskforce 
further in the coming months. 

Best 

 (she/her) 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

2

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--- Page 62 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:

Subject:

Wednesday, 26 February 2025 2:02 PM

; Defending Democracy Unit; 

Re: Placeholder: LinkedIn/EIAT meeting [SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Thanks so much, 

 We've received the invite and look forward to meeting with you all. 

Best wishes, 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, February 26, 2025 11:27:47 am 
To: 
Cc: 

 Defending Democracy Unit 

Subject: RE: Placeholder: LinkedIn/EIAT meeting [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

That’s fantastic, thanks for getting back to me. Updated calendar invite coming your way shortly. 

Please do reach out if you want to check or discuss anything prior to the meeting, otherwise we’ll see you on 12 
March. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone:

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, 26 February 2025 11:22 AM 
To: Tanya Evans <tanya.evans@aec.gov.au> 
Cc: 

 Defending Democracy Unit 

; 

1

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--- Page 63 ---

Subject: Re: Placeholder: LinkedIn/EIAT meeting [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

HI 
Thank you again for your kind patience.  My colleague, 
call.  9:30am - 10:30 am on Wed 12th March works for us. 
Please don’t hesitate to reach out if there’s anything further I can help with. 

 (cc’d) , will also join our 

Kind regards, 

From:
Date: Tuesday, 25 February 2025 at 11:23 AM 
To:
Cc: 

 Defending Democracy Unit 

, 

Subject: RE: Placeholder: LinkedIn/EIAT meeting [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi again, 

Apologies, I was a bit hasty, the Chair has another meeting booked in for 10.30. If you are unable to make 0930 to 
1030, I will see what I can do, but may need to offer another time. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director 

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Tuesday, 25 February 2025 11:20 AM 
To: 
Cc: 

; Defending Democracy Unit 

Subject: RE: Placeholder: LinkedIn/EIAT meeting [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

; 

Hi 

No problem, meeting added at requested time and placeholder flag removed. 

2

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--- Page 64 ---

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director 

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From:
Sent: Tuesday, 25 February 2025 11:17 AM 
To: 
Cc: 
<
Subject: Re: Placeholder: LinkedIn/EIAT meeting [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

>; 

 Defending Democracy Unit 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe. 

Hi 
Thank you for your kind patience.  Could you please hold Wed 12th March at 10am for us? 

Kind regards, 

From: 
Date: Tuesday, 25 February 2025 at 11:01 AM 
To: 
Cc: 

 Defending Democracy Unit 

Subject: RE: Placeholder: LinkedIn/EIAT meeting [SEC=OFFICIAL] 
Hi 

, 

Taskforce member calendars are filling up, so I propose moving this meeting to next week or the week after. 
Proposing the following new times: 

Friday, 7 March 1pm to 2pm (I’ll send a placeholder for this one shortly) 
Friday, 7 March 2pm to 3pm 

 
 
  Wednesday, 12 March 9.30am to 10.30am 
 

Friday, 14 March 1pm to 2pm 

Let me know what suits and I will check the Chair’s calendar remains free. 

Many thanks, 

| Assistant Director 

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 

3

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--- Page 65 ---

Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies.  If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

4

s 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47F


--- Page 66 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Thursday, 18 July 2024 1:42 PM

Defending Democracy Unit; 
RE: Proposed meeting | AEC & Microsoft [SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

My colleagues can join this call on Tuesday 23 July at 8am. 

Could you please send a Teams invita(cid:415)on? 

From our side, it will be the following: 

- 
- 
- 
- 
- 

, Director, Informa(cid:415)on Integrity, 
, Director Corporate Civic Responsibility, 
(op(cid:415)onal), Global Field Engagement and Strategy, 

, Head of Government Aﬀairs ANZ, 

Could you also please share any speciﬁc topics you would like us to address so the team can prepare for this call? It 
would be great to get this before the end of the week.  

Best 

Manager | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From: 
Sent: Thursday, July 18, 2024 10:11 AM 
To: 
Cc: Defending Democracy Unit ; 
Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Proposed meeting | AEC & Microsoft [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi again 

No problem at all, we assumed you had a lot on your plate at the moment! 

We have the following op(cid:415)ons available: 

1

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--- Page 67 ---

  8am to 9am Tuesday, 23 July (PDT: 3pm Monday, 22 July) 
  8.30am to 9.30am Wednesday, 7 August (PDT: 3.30pm Tuesday, 6 August) 
  8.30am to 9.30am Thursday, 8 August (PDT: 3.30pm Wednesday, 7 August) 
  8.30am to 9.30am Friday, 9 August (PDT: 3.30pm Thursday, 8 August) 

I have assumed your US based colleagues are on the west coast (and hopefully I have calculated the (cid:415)me diﬀerence 
correctly!). 

Let me know which of these, if any, are suitable. 

Cheers 

From:
Sent: Thursday, July 18, 2024 9:51 AM 
To: 
Cc: 

>  

 Defending Democracy Unit 

;

Subject: RE: Proposed meeting | AEC & Microsoft [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or open 
a(cid:425)achments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

My apologies for the delay – I appreciate the prompt as I have just come back from leave and this was on my list for 
this week! 

Could you please share some more forward dates for me to then lock in with my colleagues?  

And thank you for your pa(cid:415)ence. With some big electoral events interna(cid:415)onally having now passed we should have 
more availability.  

Best 

Manager | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From: 
Sent: Thursday, July 18, 2024 9:42 AM 
To: 
Cc: 

Defending Democracy Unit 

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Proposed meeting | AEC & Microsoft [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Good morning 

2

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--- Page 68 ---

Following up on the below email chain. Have you had a chance to check for availabili(cid:415)es for a mee(cid:415)ng with us? Let 
me know if there is anything I can do to assist- happy to look ahead and suggest some dates again. 

Kind regards 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Tuesday, June 18, 2024 5:34 PM 
To: Defending Democracy Unit 
Cc: 
Subject: RE: Proposed meeting | AEC & Microsoft [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or open 
a(cid:425)achments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Thanks 

– I am checking with my colleagues and will come back to you shortly.  

Best 

Manager | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From: Defending Democracy Unit 
Sent: Tuesday, June 18, 2024 3:15 PM 
To: 
Cc: 
Unit 
Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Proposed meeting | AEC & Microsoft [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

 Defending Democracy 

Of course, thanks for US public holiday reminder! In that case, the following week we have availability at the same 
(cid:415)me on Tuesday, 16 July (Monday 15 July for US).  
Otherwise, some op(cid:415)ons the week a(cid:332)er that on either 23 or 24 July AUS (22/23 July US). 

Many thanks, 

3

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--- Page 69 ---

SEE she/her) | Senior Project Officer

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch
Australian Electoral Commission

|

A EC Make sure you're enrolled to vote,
Visit www.aec. gov.au
=

 
  
 

From:

Sent: Monday, June 17, 2024 5:00 PM
To: Defending Democracy Unit
Ce:

Subject: RE: Proposed meeting | AEC & Microsoft [SEC=OFFICIAL]

 
 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or open
attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.

 

Thanks Ba

Unfortunately, | am on leave that week and need to be part of the discussion also. Apologies for not foreshadowing.

How does the week after look for your team, to have some options to offer my colleagues? The week prior will clash
with 4 July holidays.

Best

a Microsoft
SE (she/her)

Manager | Corporate External and Legal Affairs

www.microsoft.com

   

From: Defending Democracy Unt

Sent: Monday, June 17, 2024 4:55 PM
To:
Ce: ; Defending Democracy
Unit

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Proposed meeting | AEC & Microsoft [SEC=OFFICIAL]

    
  

You don't often get email os Learn why this is important
‘a

No worries at all. Grateful for you checking in with the Democracy Forward team, and definitely understand what a
busy time this must be for them. Hopefully scheduling this meeting after the UK and French elections will be helpful!


--- Page 70 ---

Our team can be available to meet between 8-10 AEST on July 9, 10, or 11 (which would be between 6-8pm ET on 
July 8, 9, or 10). Do let us know when would be best for a Teams call, and thank you helping to align everyone’s 
schedules. 

We’ll likely s(cid:415)ll reach out to ini(cid:415)ate a similar engagement to the one prior to the last federal elec(cid:415)on/referendum 
once a date is known, but in the mean(cid:415)me we’re really interested in learning more about the AI topics we 
men(cid:415)oned, and any relevant insights gained from other elec(cid:415)ons so far.  

Kind regards, 

 (she/her) | Senior Project Oﬃcer  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
T: 

From: 
Sent: Monday, June 17, 2024 11:01 AM 
To: Defending Democracy Unit 
Cc:
Subject: RE: Proposed meeting | AEC & Microsoft [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or open 
a(cid:425)achments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

 – sorry for taking a few days to reply, but I wanted to ﬁrst check in with my colleagues from 

Thank you 
Microso(cid:332)’s Democracy Forward team based in the US who have par(cid:415)cipated in these engagements ahead of the last 
federal elec(cid:415)on. 

The colleagues I’d like to join include 
along with
for us to catch them in their evening. They are keen to support this engagement and would be well placed to 
address the ques(cid:415)ons below, but I note they are working on the UK, France and US elec(cid:415)ons at the moment (among 
others!) so availability is a li(cid:425)le tricky. 

 whom AEC has had a number of previous engagements with, 
. Both are based in US Eastern Time (Washington DC), which means early morning is best 

Could you please propose some dates when at Teams call between 7-10am might be possible for your side and I can 
try to align schedules?  

Thanks 

Manager | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

5

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--- Page 71 ---

From: Defending Democracy Unit
Sent: Thursday, June 13, 2024 11:19 AM

 
 
   
   

Cc: Defending Democracy Unit

Subject: [EXTERNAL] Proposed meeting | AEC & Microsoft [SEC=OFFICIAL]

You don't often get email MS Learn why this is important

 

+i,

| hope you’ve been well. The Australian Electoral Commission has appreciated the productive engagement we’ve
had with Microsoft in the past, and while the date for the next Australian federal election is yet to be determined by
the government, we are keeping a close eye on developments in this ‘year of elections’ around the world,
particularly advancements in generative Al technology.

With that in mind, we are very interested in meeting with representatives from Microsoft’s Al team to learn more
about the following:

e Any observations and lessons learned from recent elections around the globe and how these experiences
are shaping your work on generative Al;

e How Microsoft is responding to electoral integrity risks when it comes to generative Al products like Copilot
and Azure, with a particular focus on how we can ensure the Australian public has access to timely and
accurate information about the electoral process;

e Confirming pathways for the Elecoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) and the AEC to flag potential
issues with you in relation to Australian federal electoral events and Al products like Copilot, and whether
this would differ from our existing pathway;

e Additionally, we’d also be interested in learning more about any of Microsoft’s approaches to both
watermarking but also identifying watermarked/Al-generated content.

Any assistance you can provide in directing us to the relevant teams to meet with would be much appreciated.
Kind regards,

SE (she/her) | Senior Project Officer

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch
Australian Electoral Commission

 

A EC Make sure youre enrolled to vote,
Australian Electoral Commission Visit WWW.@eC_fOV.aul
e
DISCLAIMER:

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.

DISCLAIMER:


--- Page 72 ---

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
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7


--- Page 73 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Categories:

Friday, 13 September 2024 12:27 PM

Defending Democracy Unit; Matthew Haigh
RE: RSVP: in person briefing from MSFT Democracy Forward [SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

I hope you have had a good week. I was touching base to follow up on a few details ahead of 

’s visit on 23rd.  

In par(cid:415)cular, keen to have advice early next week on who from the EIAT will be a(cid:425)ending, as well as a desired 
agenda.  

Dave would like to have (cid:415)me to prepare to address the areas of most interest to the Taskforce. He will have some 
slides to present so let us know if connec(cid:415)ng his computer to present will be possible or if he needs to prepare and 
send through in advance (less preferred as he has a lot of content he can dip into depending on where the 
discussion goes, if he can present he will keep that ﬂexibility). 

With regards to a (cid:415)me to meet 
in Singapore, I understand from 
and there will be lots of opportuni(cid:415)es to catch up – Dave looks forward to upda(cid:415)ng him on the conversa(cid:415)ons he will 
have just had in Canberra, among other things. 

 that the conference is quite small 

Best 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From: 
Sent: Friday, 23 August 2024 11:20 AM 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: RE: RSVP: in person brieﬁng from MSFT Democracy Forward [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

 ; Defending Democracy Unit ; Ma(cid:425)hew Haigh  

Thank you!  

We are very pleased to be able to secure this engagement. 

My colleagues are connected with Tania’s team so I think we are in good shape there. Appreciate your help.  

1

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--- Page 74 ---

Have a lovely weekend 

Best 

Manager | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 
Mob: 

From: 
Sent: Friday, 23 August 2024 11:09 AM 
To: 
Cc: 
Democracy Unit 
Subject: [EXTERNAL] FW: RSVP: in person brieﬁng from MSFT Democracy Forward [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

>; Ma(cid:425)hew Haigh 

 Defending 

Hi 

I have just forwarded mee(cid:415)ng invites to yourself and the colleagues listed below. 

I’ll touch base again with you next week to update you on: 

  a(cid:425)endance of EIAT taskforce members at 23 September mee(cid:415)ng 
  availability of Michael for a pre-mee(cid:415)ng in the week before 23 September 
  Ma(cid:425)’s availability to meet up with 

 during the conference in Singapore 

Also, I have forwarded your email to the relevant members of Tania Wilson’s team so they can also arrange a 
mee(cid:415)ng for 23 September, but please feel free to let me know if you haven’t received a reply by next week and I 
would be happy to follow up from my end. 

Thanks for ge(cid:427)ng back to me so quickly and have a good weekend. 

Cheers, 

s| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Thursday, August 22, 2024 1:47 PM 
To: EIAT 
Cc:

>  

Subject: RE: RSVP: in person brieﬁng from MSFT Democracy Forward [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

2

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--- Page 75 ---

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Many thanks indeed, Tanya. We are pleased that this opportunity aligns and appreciate Michael hos(cid:415)ng. The (cid:415)me 
and loca(cid:415)on proposed work well for us.  

Please send through an invita(cid:415)on to me, along with my colleagues as below (
please let us know if numbers on our side are a problem) 

 and 

 may not both a(cid:425)end, do 

Please let me know in due course which agencies will a(cid:425)end so I can brief 
the week before with me, Michael and your team to go over agenda and any speciﬁc areas of interest? 

 Should we also schedule some (cid:415)me 

If it is at all possible to meet Tania’s team either before or a(cid:332)er that would be ideal from a scheduling perspec(cid:415)ve. I 
will also let my colleague 

 know as she will join for that side mee(cid:415)ng and helping with arrangements.  

I believe that Ma(cid:425)hew and 
like to ﬁnd (cid:415)me for a mee(cid:415)ng or pullaside with 

 will both be at the same conference in Singapore later in the week – if he would 

 there , we can certainly arrange that. Let me know? 

Best 

Kate 

Manager | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From: EIAT 
Sent: Thursday, 22 August 2024 11:41 AM 
To: 
Cc:

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RSVP: in person brieﬁng from MSFT Democracy Forward [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

 is in 
Contac(cid:415)ng you on behalf of Ma(cid:425) and 
town. EIAT representa(cid:415)ves will appreciate a chance to meet, especially in the lead up to the US Presiden(cid:415)al elec(cid:415)on. 
 was really insigh(cid:414)ul and a pleasure to talk to when we met online last month.  
Also, I’d note 

- thanks for reaching out to arrange a mee(cid:415)ng while 

Ma(cid:425) will be overseas at a conference and therefore unable to make it to this mee(cid:415)ng, however First Assistant 
Commissioner Michael Lynch is available from 3pm to 4pm on Monday 23 September. 

Please let me know if this works for you and I would be happy to forward the calendar invite. We would be very 
happy to host you here at the AEC on Mort Street. 

3

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F


--- Page 76 ---

I’ll forward this email chain to Tania Wilson’s team to arrange a separate (cid:415)me to discuss the technical and security 
aspects of delivering the next federal elec(cid:415)on. I’ll also ﬂag for their considera(cid:415)on that 
available if needed. 

 would be 

Kind regards 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Monday, August 19, 2024 2:39 PM 
To: Ma(cid:425)hew Haigh 
Cc: 
Subject: Request: in person brieﬁng from MSFT Democracy Forward 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi Ma(cid:425)hew 

I am pleased to share that 
Monday 23 September. You will recall that Dave presented to you and colleagues a few weeks ago.  

 from Microso(cid:332)’s Democracy Forward team will be visi(cid:415)ng Canberra on 

 has oﬀered to provide an in-person brieﬁng to the Electoral Integrity and Assurance Taskforce on what 

Microso(cid:332) has been seeing and doing globally in this year of elec(cid:415)ons. As the EIAT prepares for the next federal 
elec(cid:415)on, and in the weeks before the US Presiden(cid:415)al Elec(cid:415)ons, his visit is very (cid:415)mely. I think this discussion would 
be very insigh(cid:414)ul for the EIAT.  

 is only in Canberra for one day, convening the Taskforce reps together will help us to reach all the key 

Given 
people. We would propose a roundtable format of 60-90 minutes, depending on what you think would be most 
useful for the Taskforce, to comprise a brieﬁng from Dave then group discussion.  

We would welcome your team’s assistance with arranging this event if that is possible? We have an appropriate 
venue at our Canberra oﬃce on Na(cid:415)onal Circuit if needed, but are also happy to come to you or another agency.  

Separately to mee(cid:415)ng EIAT, I’d propose we arrange (cid:415)me for 
about AEC’s prepara(cid:415)ons for the elec(cid:415)on to focus more on technical and security aspects – we would bring 

 to speak to you, Tania and other AEC execu(cid:415)ves 

 into this discussion.  

Please feel free to give me a call if that is simpler to talk this through. I do hope we can make the most out of this 
visit for you and your team. 

4

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs47F


--- Page 77 ---

I look forward to hearing from you. 

Best 

Manager | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

5

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F


--- Page 78 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Thursday, 22 August 2024 1:47 PM
EIAT

RE: RSVP: in person briefing from MSFT Democracy Forward [SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Many thanks indeed, 
and loca(cid:415)on proposed work well for us.  

 We are pleased that this opportunity aligns and appreciate Michael hos(cid:415)ng. The (cid:415)me 

Please send through an invita(cid:415)on to me, along with my colleagues as below (
please let us know if numbers on our side are a problem) 

 and 

 may not both a(cid:425)end, do 

Please let me know in due course which agencies will a(cid:425)end so I can brief 
the week before with me, Michael and your team to go over agenda and any speciﬁc areas of interest? 

 Should we also schedule some (cid:415)me 

If it is at all possible to meet Tania’s team either before or a(cid:332)er that would be ideal from a scheduling perspec(cid:415)ve. I 
will also let my colleague 

 know as she will join for that side mee(cid:415)ng and helping with arrangements.  

I believe that Ma(cid:425)hew and 
like to ﬁnd (cid:415)me for a mee(cid:415)ng or pullaside with 

 will both be at the same conference in Singapore later in the week – if he would 

 there , we can certainly arrange that. Let me know? 

Best 

Manager | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From: EIAT  
Sent: Thursday, 22 August 2024 11:41 AM 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: [EXTERNAL] RSVP: in person brieﬁng from MSFT Democracy Forward [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

Contac(cid:415)ng you on behalf of Ma(cid:425) and 
 is in 
town. EIAT representa(cid:415)ves will appreciate a chance to meet, especially in the lead up to the US Presiden(cid:415)al elec(cid:415)on. 
 was really insigh(cid:414)ul and a pleasure to talk to when we met online last month.  
Also, I’d note 

 thanks for reaching out to arrange a mee(cid:415)ng while 

1

s 22s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F


--- Page 79 ---

Ma(cid:425) will be overseas at a conference and therefore unable to make it to this mee(cid:415)ng, however First Assistant 
Commissioner Michael Lynch is available from 3pm to 4pm on Monday 23 September. 

Please let me know if this works for you and I would be happy to forward the calendar invite. We would be very 
happy to host you here at the AEC on Mort Street. 

I’ll forward this email chain to Tania Wilson’s team to arrange a separate (cid:415)me to discuss the technical and security 
aspects of delivering the next federal elec(cid:415)on. I’ll also ﬂag for their considera(cid:415)on that 
available if needed. 

 would be 

Kind regards 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email:

From:
Sent: Monday, August 19, 2024 2:39 PM 
To: Ma(cid:425)hew Haigh 
Cc: 
Subject: Request: in person brieﬁng from MSFT Democracy Forward 

> 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi Ma(cid:425)hew 

I am pleased to share that 
Monday 23 September. You will recall that Dave presented to you and colleagues a few weeks ago.  

 from Microso(cid:332)’s Democracy Forward team will be visi(cid:415)ng Canberra on 

 has oﬀered to provide an in-person brieﬁng to the Electoral Integrity and Assurance Taskforce on what 

Microso(cid:332) has been seeing and doing globally in this year of elec(cid:415)ons. As the EIAT prepares for the next federal 
elec(cid:415)on, and in the weeks before the US Presiden(cid:415)al Elec(cid:415)ons, his visit is very (cid:415)mely. I think this discussion would 
be very insigh(cid:414)ul for the EIAT.  

 is only in Canberra for one day, convening the Taskforce reps together will help us to reach all the key 

Given 
people. We would propose a roundtable format of 60-90 minutes, depending on what you think would be most 
useful for the Taskforce, to comprise a brieﬁng from Dave then group discussion.  

We would welcome your team’s assistance with arranging this event if that is possible? We have an appropriate 
venue at our Canberra oﬃce on Na(cid:415)onal Circuit if needed, but are also happy to come to you or another agency.  

2

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47E


--- Page 80 ---

Separately to mee(cid:415)ng EIAT, I’d propose we arrange (cid:415)me for 
about AEC’s prepara(cid:415)ons for the elec(cid:415)on to focus more on technical and security aspects – we would bring 

 to speak to you, Tania and other AEC execu(cid:415)ves 

 into this discussion.  

Please feel free to give me a call if that is simpler to talk this through. I do hope we can make the most out of this 
visit for you and your team. 

I look forward to hearing from you. 

Best 

Manager | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

3

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs47F


--- Page 81 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Hi 

Tuesday, 21 January 2025 11:38 AM

RE: Suggested change to Microsoft/AEC meeting schedule on Wednesday, 22 
January [SEC=OFFICIAL]

Conﬁrming there will be a Teams link available for use in the room. 

Kind regards 

 (she/her) | Executive Officer to the Acting Electoral Commissioner 

Executive Leadership Team 
Australian Electoral Commission 
T: 

From: 
Sent: Tuesday, 21 January 2025 11:28 AM 
To: 
Cc: 

Subject: RE: Suggested change to Microsoft/AEC meeting schedule on Wednesday, 22 January 
[SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

 and 

Given the topics and audience, 
teams link from the room.  

Best 

 will prepare a few slides to present if we can ensure he can connect up to a 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

1

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 22s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs47F


--- Page 82 ---

From:
Sent: Monday, 20 January 2025 4:47 PM 
To:
Cc:

Subject: RE: Suggested change to Microsoft/AEC meeting schedule on Wednesday, 22 January [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Thanks everyone. That change is noted with thanks.  

 and I will a(cid:425)end in person, with members of the AEC Account Team to also a(cid:425)end. I am conﬁrming who this 

will be but will ensure we can cover oﬀ on the topics outlined below.  

We will s(cid:415)ll come along at 11 for the mee(cid:415)ng with the Cyber Branch, then can take 
checked in for the 1:30 start.  

 for lunch to be back and 

Looking forward to these discussions.  

Best 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From: 
Sent: Monday, 20 January 2025 4:34 PM 
To: 
Cc: 

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Suggested change to Microsoft/AEC meeting schedule on Wednesday, 22 January 
[SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

 and 

Thanks for conﬁrming these details, the calendar invite has now been updated to reﬂect the combined mee(cid:415)ng. 

The mee(cid:415)ng (cid:415)me will be 1:30pm Canberra (cid:415)me. 

Kind regards 

 (she/her) | Executive Officer to the Acting Electoral Commissioner 

Executive Leadership Team 
Australian Electoral Commission 
T: 

2

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F


--- Page 83 ---

From:
Sent: Monday, 20 January 2025 4:23 PM 
To: 
Cc: 

Subject: Suggested change to Microsoft/AEC meeting schedule on Wednesday, 22 January [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

 and 

Just wanted to close the loop on a suggested change to the schedule of Microso(cid:332) mee(cid:415)ngs here on 
Wednesday. If this has already been addressed, then please disregard. 

Given it has been suggested that the mee(cid:415)ngs with the CIOD (Tania Wilson’s area) and the EC (Jeﬀ) be 
combined into one mee(cid:415)ng for the Execu(cid:415)ve Leadership Team (ELT), I just wanted to make sure 

 and 

 had enough (cid:415)me to prepare/make adjustments and to conﬁrm what (cid:415)me the combined mee(cid:415)ng 

would take place. 

If the mee(cid:415)ngs are to be combined, then the agenda would include exis(cid:415)ng items prepared for the CIO 
and the following items that the EC is interested in: 

  Executive level briefing on Cyber threat landscape (MTAC/MSTIC insights) 
  Synthetic media - including AI and the practical application of detecting / content provenance + 

credentialing / Microsoft's 'AI for good lab' initiative. 

  Mis/disinformation and Microsoft's efforts in this space, especially media and digital literacy.  
Insights from elections in other geographies, for example major common themes / concerns  
 

Potentially in addition to some, or all, of the following items suggested by 

 (time permitting): 

  support for electoral preparations from the technical/customer support perspective;  
  content credentialling and pilot next steps; 
  synthetic media and AI related harms, including advice on how to respond to incidents 
  overview of the Democracy Forward visit program including training for political campaigns and 

journalists; 

  update on implementation of the Tech Accord (as per correspondence this month)  
  any other topics of interest 

 – if not already aware, please let us know if any issues with this change.  

 – let me know if there is anything I can do to help. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

3

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--- Page 84 ---

Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone:
 | DDU Group Line: 
My hours are 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday 

| Protected email: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies.  If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

4

s 47Fs 47Es 47F


--- Page 85 ---

From:

Sent: Thursday, 19 September 2024 1:10 PM

To: S47F |

Ce: Defending Democracy Unit

Subject: RE: Update: RSVPs and agenda items: in person briefing from MSFT Democracy

Forward at AEC [SEC=OFFICIAL]

This looks excellent, thank you for the update NA

 

 

We look forward to seeing you on Monday.

Best

an
B® Microsoft

   

 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Affairs

www.microsoft.com

From:

Sent: Thursday, 19 September 2024 12:33 PM
To:
Cc: Defending Democracy Unit ;

Subject: [EXTERNAL] Update: RSVPs and agenda items: in person briefing from MSFT Democracy Forward at AEC
[SEC=OFFICIAL]

Hi again aa

By way of update for Monday, one of my colleagues has generously put together this table of attendees. We have
also reached out to HA to see if there is anyone at working level who would like to attend. Comms and HA are now
represented.

 

DITRDCA

N36
Michael | Sa ae a
Lynch — FAS, - AD, Events,
Counter Information Coordination, Manager,
Foreign Integrity Communications Data and
Interference and Operations Digital
(ECCO). Policy
(virtual)
— Director,
Open Source
Foreign
Interference

Microsoft


--- Page 86 ---

and
Disinformation

 

There have not been any further requests or suggestions for topics to discuss.
Hope this helps.
Cheers,

| Assistant Director
Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch
Australian Electoral Commission

Phone: ARIE | 00 Group Line: ENR | Protected ri! SS

My hours are 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday

From:
Sent: Monday, September 16, 2024 2:39 PM

 

   
  
  
 

To:
Ce:

Defending
Democracy Unit :

‘EG

Subject: RE: RSVPs and agenda items: in person briefing from MSFT Democracy Forward at AEC [SEC=OFFICIAL]

Many thanks indeed, aa

  

; Matthew Haigh

  

 

This looks great. Thanks for sending the reminder to Taskforce members. In particular, it would be great to have
Dept Comms and Dept Home Affairs attend if they are available.

| am aware of the ONI discussions with MTAC broadly, but not sure where they are up to so it is a good prompt to
me to check in.

Many thanks

m® Microsoft
S4/F | (she/her)

Director | Corporate External and Legal Affairs

   

 

www.microsoft.com


--- Page 87 ---

From: 
Sent: Monday, 16 September 2024 1:38 PM 
To: 
Cc:
Democracy Unit 

>; Ma(cid:425)hew Haigh 

Defending 

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RSVPs and agenda items: in person brieﬁng from MSFT Democracy Forward at AEC 
[SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Good morning 

Thanks for checking in! 

A(cid:425)endance 
To date, we have had responses conﬁrming a(cid:425)endance from ASD (x1), ONI (x2) and DITRDCA (Infrastructure x 1). 
This is in addi(cid:415)on to AEC a(cid:425)endance ( x3-4). The rest have just been nil response rather than declined. I will send out 
a reminder today, along with an op(cid:415)on for those that can’t a(cid:425)end to submit ques(cid:415)ons/areas of interest which I can 
provide in a follow up email. 

Presen(cid:415)ng 
In rela(cid:415)on to presen(cid:415)ng, it won’t be an issue for us to grant Dave presenter permission to make life easy for him. I’ll 
check in with the people who know how to manage this to make sure it’s good to go for next Monday. 

Agenda items 
I haven’t put together a formal agenda, but can ﬂag that areas of interest will include the following: 

  What has Microso(cid:332) observed or learned in rela(cid:415)on to how electoral integrity* has been 

managed/maintained globally this year? 

o  What has happened that you were expec(cid:415)ng? 
o  What has surprised you (both posi(cid:415)ve and nega(cid:415)ve)? 
o  What could Australia learn from this? 

  How has Microso(cid:332) adapted its approach to elec(cid:415)ons based on what it has learned so far this year? 
  What are some useful (or terrible!) approaches to mi(cid:415)ga(cid:415)ng threats to electoral integrity that you have 

observed from other pla(cid:414)orms and/or from other electoral management bodies? 

  What are Microso(cid:332)’s insights (if any) into the Sovereign Ci(cid:415)zen movement? 
  How big an impact do you assess AI has had on elec(cid:415)ons to date? 

o  The existence of AI generated mis and disinforma(cid:415)on, deepfakes etc does not necessarily correlate 

with impact 

*We usually consider threats to electoral integrity in terms of cyber, mis/disinforma(cid:415)on, physical threats and foreign 
interference, but of course there is plenty of overlap between these four areas. 

Also, ONI reps queried whether your teams are aware of ONI’s ongoing discussions to contract support from 
Microso(cid:332) Threat Intelligence Center (MSTIC) and Microso(cid:332) Threat Analysis Center (MTAC). They didn’t ﬂag any 
ques(cid:415)ons or issues but might appreciate an update on whether you are aware of this and how the Democracy 
Forward team interacts with the other two. 

Lastly, Ma(cid:425) is copied in, but I will follow up to ﬂag that 
no doubt he would be keen for a chat. 

 will be at the conference in Singapore next week. I have 

I’ll check in with you again in the next day or two to update you on RSVPs and whether anyone has replied with a 
ques(cid:415)on or area of interest to cover. 

Many thanks, 

3

s 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F


--- Page 88 ---

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Friday, September 13, 2024 12:27 PM 
To: 
Cc: 
Democracy Unit 
Subject: RE: RSVP: in person brieﬁng from MSFT Democracy Forward [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

>; Ma(cid:425)hew Haigh <

; Defending 

> 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

I hope you have had a good week. I was touching base to follow up on a few details ahead of 

’s visit on 23rd.  

In par(cid:415)cular, keen to have advice early next week on who from the EIAT will be a(cid:425)ending, as well as a desired 
agenda.  

 would like to have (cid:415)me to prepare to address the areas of most interest to the Taskforce. He will have some 

slides to present so let us know if connec(cid:415)ng his computer to present will be possible or if he needs to prepare and 
send through in advance (less preferred as he has a lot of content he can dip into depending on where the 
discussion goes, if he can present he will keep that ﬂexibility). 

With regards to a (cid:415)me to meet Ma(cid:425)hew in Singapore, I understand from 
and there will be lots of opportuni(cid:415)es to catch up – 
have just had in Canberra, among other things. 

 looks forward to upda(cid:415)ng him on the conversa(cid:415)ons he will 

 that the conference is quite small 

Best 

 (she/her) 

Director | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From:
Sent: Friday, 23 August 2024 11:20 AM 
To: 
Cc: 

4

; Defending 

s 47Es 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs47Fs47Fs47F


--- Page 89 ---

Democracy Unit ET  v1otthow Haigh
Subject: RE: RSVP: in person briefing from MSFT Democracy Forward [SEC=OFFICIAL]

Thank you!
We are very pleased to be able to secure this engagement.
My colleagues are connected with a team so | think we are in good shape there. Appreciate your help.

Have a lovely weekend

Best

 

a= Microsoft
SEE (she/her)

Manager | Corporate External and Legal Affairs

 
 
 
    
         

www.microsoft.com

From:
Sent: Friday, 23 August 2024 11:09 AM

Defending
Democracy Unit ; Matthew Haigh
Subject: [EXTERNAL] FW: RSVP: in person briefing from MSFT Democracy Forward [SEC=OFFICIAL]

va
| have just forwarded meeting invites to yourself and the colleagues listed below.

Ill touch base again with you next week to update you on:

e attendance of EIAT taskforce members at 23 September meeting
e availability of Michael for a pre-meeting in the week before 23 September
e Matt's availability to meet up with during the conference in Singapore

Also, | have forwarded your email to the relevant members of Tania Wilson’s team so they can also arrange a
meeting for 23 September, but please feel free to let me know if you haven’t received a reply by next week and |
would be happy to follow up from my end.

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly and have a good weekend.

Cheers,

ae | Assistant Director

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch
Australian Electoral Commission

Phone: ARE | ODU Group Line: MARI | Protected ri!


--- Page 90 ---

From: 
Sent: Thursday, August 22, 2024 1:47 PM 
To: EIAT 
Cc: 

; 

Subject: RE: RSVP: in person brieﬁng from MSFT Democracy Forward [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Many thanks indeed, 
and loca(cid:415)on proposed work well for us.  

 We are pleased that this opportunity aligns and appreciate Michael hos(cid:415)ng. The (cid:415)me 

Please send through an invita(cid:415)on to me, along with my colleagues as below (
please let us know if numbers on our side are a problem) 

 and 

 may not both a(cid:425)end, do 

Please let me know in due course which agencies will a(cid:425)end so I can brief 
the week before with me, Michael and your team to go over agenda and any speciﬁc areas of interest? 

 Should we also schedule some (cid:415)me 

If it is at all possible to meet 
will also let my colleague 

 team either before or a(cid:332)er that would be ideal from a scheduling perspec(cid:415)ve. I 
 know as she will join for that side mee(cid:415)ng and helping with arrangements.  

I believe that Ma(cid:425)hew and 
like to ﬁnd (cid:415)me for a mee(cid:415)ng or pullaside with 

 will both be at the same conference in Singapore later in the week – if he would 

 there , we can certainly arrange that. Let me know? 

Best 

Manager | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

From: EIAT 
Sent: Thursday, 22 August 2024 11:41 AM 
To: 
Cc: 

; 

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RSVP: in person brieﬁng from MSFT Democracy Forward [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi 

 is in 
Contac(cid:415)ng you on behalf of Ma(cid:425) and 
town. EIAT representa(cid:415)ves will appreciate a chance to meet, especially in the lead up to the US Presiden(cid:415)al elec(cid:415)on. 
 was really insigh(cid:414)ul and a pleasure to talk to when we met online last month.  
Also, I’d note 

 thanks for reaching out to arrange a mee(cid:415)ng while 

6

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--- Page 91 ---

Ma(cid:425) will be overseas at a conference and therefore unable to make it to this mee(cid:415)ng, however First Assistant 
Commissioner Michael Lynch is available from 3pm to 4pm on Monday 23 September. 

Please let me know if this works for you and I would be happy to forward the calendar invite. We would be very 
happy to host you here at the AEC on Mort Street. 

I’ll forward this email chain to Tania Wilson’s team to arrange a separate (cid:415)me to discuss the technical and security 
aspects of delivering the next federal elec(cid:415)on. I’ll also ﬂag for their considera(cid:415)on that 
available if needed. 

 would be 

Kind regards 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Monday, August 19, 2024 2:39 PM 
To: Ma(cid:425)hew Haigh 
Cc: 
Subject: Request: in person brieﬁng from MSFT Democracy Forward 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi Ma(cid:425)hew 

I am pleased to share that 
Monday 23 September. You will recall that 

 from Microso(cid:332)’s Democracy Forward team will be visi(cid:415)ng Canberra on 

 presented to you and colleagues a few weeks ago.  

 has oﬀered to provide an in-person brieﬁng to the Electoral Integrity and Assurance Taskforce on what 

Microso(cid:332) has been seeing and doing globally in this year of elec(cid:415)ons. As the EIAT prepares for the next federal 
elec(cid:415)on, and in the weeks before the US Presiden(cid:415)al Elec(cid:415)ons, his visit is very (cid:415)mely. I think this discussion would 
be very insigh(cid:414)ul for the EIAT.  

 is only in Canberra for one day, convening the Taskforce reps together will help us to reach all the key 

Given 
people. We would propose a roundtable format of 60-90 minutes, depending on what you think would be most 
useful for the Taskforce, to comprise a brieﬁng from 

 then group discussion.  

We would welcome your team’s assistance with arranging this event if that is possible? We have an appropriate 
venue at our Canberra oﬃce on Na(cid:415)onal Circuit if needed, but are also happy to come to you or another agency.  

7

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--- Page 92 ---

Separately to mee(cid:415)ng EIAT, I’d propose we arrange (cid:415)me for 
about AEC’s prepara(cid:415)ons for the elec(cid:415)on to focus more on technical and security aspects – we would bring 

 to speak to you, Tania and other AEC execu(cid:415)ves 

 into this discussion.  

Please feel free to give me a call if that is simpler to talk this through. I do hope we can make the most out of this 
visit for you and your team. 

I look forward to hearing from you. 

Best 

Kate 

 (she/her) 

Manager | Corporate External and Legal Aﬀairs 

www.microso(cid:332).com 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

8

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F

Documents 3-16 - Google - Compiled Documents.pdf (pdf)

Download file

--- Page 1 ---

Subject:
Location:

Start:
End:
Show Time As:

Canceled: AEC meeting with Google & YouTube [SEC=OFFICIAL]
Microsoft Teams Meeting

Mon 16/12/2024 10:00 AM
Mon 16/12/2024 10:30 AM
Free

Recurrence:

(none)

Meeting Status:

Not yet responded

Organiser:
Required Attendees:

Optional Attendees:

Defending Democracy Unit

 Matthew Haigh

Importance:

High

Hi 

 and 

As discussed, pu(cid:427)ng this (cid:415)me in the calendar for a post-US elec(cid:415)on, pre-Christmas check-in.  

Agenda items/follow up for discussion to include: 

  A debrief on Google’s approach to AI in elections after gaining insight from the US presidential 

election on 5 November 

  Content provenance/authenticity and how it works on content uploaded to YouTube  
  Google and YouTube to provide information and insights into Sovereign Citizen promotion of 

misinformation/disinformation respective platforms 

  Google and YouTube support for the next Australian federal election 
  AEC to share trends in the election information environment with Google and YouTube 

Kind regards, 

________________________________________________________________________________ 

Microsoft Teams Need help?  

Join the meeting now  

Meeting ID: 

Passcode:

For organizers: Meeting options  

1

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Es22

--- Page 2 ---

To help p o ect y ou  p iv acy  M c osoft Off ce p ev ented au omat c download of th s pictu e f om the Inte net

This meeting invitation was generated by the AEC Microsoft Teams instance 

________________________________________________________________________________ 

2

--- Page 3 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Good morning 

, 

Thursday, 18 July 2024 9:03 AM

Defending Democracy Unit; 
Confirming meeting scheduled for 24 July | AEC & Google [SEC=OFFICIAL]

; 

Thanks for getting back to us. I will send a calendar invite with Teams link shortly.  

 (and others at Google) before, but I propose we give 
In terms of agenda for the meeting, we have met with 
an abbreviated version of what our role is (as well as the role of the Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce) and an 
environmental update before handing over to you. Let me know if this suits or you would prefer otherwise. 

Looking forward to meeting you online next week! 

Cheers 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email:

From: 
Sent: Friday, July 12, 2024 2:53 PM 
To: Defending Democracy Unit 
Cc: 

>  

Subject: Re: Proposed meeting | AEC & Google [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

,  

Happy Friday! 

Let's lock in 9-10am on Wednesday 24 July.  

If you could please send through to 

 (cc'd) and myself that would be much appreciated.  

Cheers, 

1

s22s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Fs47F

--- Page 4 ---

To help p o ect y ou  p iv acy  M c osoft Off ce p ev ented au omat c  
download of this pic u e f om the  nte net
Google  ogo

Government Affairs and Public Policy 
Google Australia  

Read the latest Google and YouTube reports 
See what's trending in Australia today  

On Tue, Jul 9, 2024 at 4:37 PM Defending Democracy Unit 

 wrote: 

Hi 

, 

No worries at all, we understand how busy you and the team have been. Grateful for your help in 
coordinating the relevant team members and their availabilities. 

Are there any time zone considerations that we need to take into account? Unfortunately, not much 
availability in the last week of July, but we have 9-10am AEST as a possibility on either the 23rd or 24th of 
July.  

Let me know if either of those dates would work for you, as well as any team members you’d like to 
attend, and we can get a Teams calendar invite sent out to you.  

Many thanks, 

 | A/g Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

Australian Electoral Commission 

DDU Line: 

 Direct Line: 

Protected Email:

2

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs 47F

--- Page 5 ---

From:
Sent: Tuesday, July 9, 2024 3:46 PM 
To: Defending Democracy Unit <
Cc: 

> 

; 

Subject: Re: Proposed meeting | AEC & Google [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

,  

I hope you and the team are well.  

My sincere apologies for the delay in responding to you. We would welcome the opportunity to continue 
to work closely and positively with the AEC in relation to election integrity.  

Do you have availability towards the end of July? 

We will pull together team members who are able to respond to these matters and prepare appropriate 
briefing materials. If you have anything else you would like us to cover please let me know.  

Look forward to working with you.  

Cheers, 

3

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47F

--- Page 6 ---

To help p otect y ou  p iv acy  Mic osoft O fice p ev ented automatic  
download of this p ctu e f om the In e net
Google  ogo

Government Affairs and Public Policy 
Google Australia  

Read the latest Google and YouTube reports 
See what's trending in Australia today  

On Thu, Jun 13, 2024 at 11:19 AM Defending Democracy Unit <
wrote: 

> 

Hi 

,  

I hope you’ve been well. The Australian Electoral Commission has appreciated the productive 
engagement we’ve had with Google in the past, and while the date for the next Australian federal 
election is yet to be determined by the government, we are keeping a close eye on developments in this 
‘year of elections’ around the world, particularly advancements in generative AI technology. 

With that in mind, we are very interested in meeting with representatives from Google’s AI team to 
learn more about the following:  

 Any observations and lessons learned from recent elections around the globe and how 
these experiences are shaping your work on generative AI; 

 How Google is responding to electoral integrity risks when it comes to generative AI 
products like Gemini, with a particular focus on how we can ensure the Australian public has 
access to timely and accurate information about the electoral process; 

 A brief overview of SynthID including how it identifies AI-generated content; 

 Discussing pathways for the Elecoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) and the AEC to 
flag potential issues with you in relation to Australian federal electoral events and AI products 
like Gemini, and whether this would differ from our existing pathway. 

4

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47F

--- Page 7 ---

Any assistance you can provide in directing us to the relevant teams to meet with would be much 
appreciated.  

Kind regards,  

 | Senior Project Officer  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

Australian Electoral Commission 

T: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or 
attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

5

s47Fs47Fs47F

--- Page 8 ---

Subject:
Location:

Start:
End:
Show Time As:

EIAT meeting with Google/YouTube representatives
Microsoft Teams Meeting

Fri 21/02/2025 1:00 PM
Fri 21/02/2025 2:00 PM
Tentative

Recurrence:

(none)

Meeting Status:

Not yet responded

Organiser:
Required Attendees:

Defending Democracy Unit
Matthew Haigh; 

Optional Attendees:

EIAT; 

Good morning / a(cid:332)ernoon EIAT Taskforce members and Google / YouTube representa(cid:415)ves, 

,  

In prepara(cid:415)on for the next federal elec(cid:415)on, the Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) are 
arranging mee(cid:415)ngs with each of the online pla(cid:414)orms. Mee(cid:415)ngs will be led by the Defending Democracy 
Unit (DDU, AEC) and representa(cid:415)ves from the EIAT taskforce agencies are welcome to a(cid:425)end. The EIAT 
Secretariat would like to thank Google / YouTube representa(cid:415)ves, 
conﬁrming their availability for this selected (cid:415)meslot.  

, for 

Although an agenda has not been ﬁnalised, the following can provide a guide.  

  Poten(cid:415)al (cid:415)ming of FE25, if not already announced  
  AEC’s role in the current informa(cid:415)on environment – educa(cid:415)on campaigns, ac(cid:415)vity on social media 
  AEC’s observa(cid:415)ons from global elec(cid:415)ons in 2024 and what that may mean for Australia 
  Google / YouTube update 

o  Any changes in policy se(cid:427)ngs  
o  Conﬁrma(cid:415)on of referral and escala(cid:415)on pathways 

  Google / YouTube’s own observa(cid:415)ons from elec(cid:415)ons globally in 2024 including:  
o  Any changes in the online environment, including the use of genera(cid:415)ve AI 

EIAT Taskforce agencies are welcome to request further agenda items they would like raised at this 
mee(cid:415)ng for the EIAT Secretariat to consider and can do so by contac(cid:415)ng the Secretariat via email or phone 
call.  

Please do not hesitate to get in touch for any further clariﬁca(cid:415)on. We look forward to mee(cid:415)ng with you 
soon.  

1

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--- Page 9 ---

Kind Regards, 

 | Project Officer  
Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
DDU Line: 
Email: 

 Direct Line: 

_____________________________________________________________________________ 
Microsoft Teams Need help?  

Join the meeting now  

Meeting ID: 

Passcode: 

2

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47E

--- Page 10 ---

From:
Sent:
To:

Subject:

>
Wednesday, 24 July 2024 10:09 AM

; Defending Democracy Unit; 

; Matthew Haigh; 

Follow up - Google/AEC Meeting @ Wed, Jul 24, 2024 9:00am – 10:00am

Categories:

Online platforms

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi all,  

Thank you for your time just now - we are pleased to continue our engagement with the AEC as we 
prepare for the AU election.  

As promised, the following are the links to some of the matters I touched on:  

  YouTube's Community Guidelines 
  YouTube Blog post on our approach to responsible AI innovation and on AI labelling 
  YouTube's Hit Pause media literacy campaign videos 

Please don't hesitate to be in touch if you have any questions.  

Cheers,  

To hel  
p o ec  y
p iv ac  
M c o s f  
O fice 
p ev en e  
au o m i
downl a  
this p c u
f om the  
In te n t

YouTube Government Affairs and Public Policy - 
Australia and New Zealand 

1

s22s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47F

--- Page 11 ---

2

Subject: FW: AEC x YouTube: 2025 Election

Location: AU-SYD-PIR-4-A-Logo (13) [GVC, No External Guests]
Start: Tue 4/02/2025 1:30 PM

End: Tue 4/02/2025 2:00 PM

Show Time As: Tentative

Recurrence: (none)

Meeting Status: Not yet responded

Organiser: S47F |

-----Original Appointment-----
Form:
Sent: Wednesday, 29 January 2025 9:19 AM

; AU-SYD-PIR-4-A-Logo (13) [GVC, No External Guests]; Zim

Subject: AEC x YouTube: 2025 Election
When: Tuesday, 4 February 2025 1:30 PM-2:00 PM Australia/Sydney.
Where: AU-SYD-PIR-4-A-Logo (13) [GVC, No External Guests]

1 Join with Google Meet
Just popping some time in for us to discuss our
proposed plan for our 2025 election campaign to help Meeting link

raise authoritative information on YouTube.
Please let me know if this doesn't work, and looking
forward to meeting.

When

Join by phone

More phone numbers

--- Page 12 ---

Tuesday 4 Feb 2025 - 1:30pm — 2pm (Eastern
Australia Time - Sydney)

Location

AU-SYD-PIR-4-A-Logo (13) [GVC, No External Guests]
View map

Guests

EIEN —2:02nisc

S47F | - optional

View all guest info

Reply (cr
Maybe No Yes

More options

Invitation from Google Calendar
You are receiving this email because you are an attendee of the event.

others regardless of their own invitation status or modify your RSVP. Learn more

--- Page 13 ---

Subject:
Location:

Start:
End:
Show Time As:

FW: Google/YouTube meeting with AEC [SEC=OFFICIAL]
Microsoft Teams Meeting

Wed 23/10/2024 1:00 PM
Wed 23/10/2024 2:00 PM
Tentative

Recurrence:

(none)

Meeting Status:

Not yet responded

Organiser:

Defending Democracy Unit

-----Original Appointment----- 
From: Defending Democracy Unit  
Sent: Thursday, 3 October 2024 2:15 PM 
To: Defending Democracy Unit; 
Haigh; 
Cc: 
Subject: Google/YouTube mee(cid:415)ng with AEC [SEC=OFFICIAL] 
When: Wednesday, 23 October 2024 1:00 PM-2:00 PM (UTC+10:00) Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney. 
Where: Microso(cid:332) Teams Mee(cid:415)ng 

; Ma(cid:425)hew 

Hi 

Thanks for your help in ﬁnding a (cid:415)me for this mee(cid:415)ng. As a guide, we are seeking to cover the following: 

1.  The AEC will provide an update on Australia’s electoral integrity environment and the work of the Electoral 

Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) 

2.  An update from Google and YouTube about observations and lessons learned from recent elections around 
the globe and how these experiences are shaping your work (especially as the US election draws nearer) 
3.  Discussion about how Google and YouTube are responding to electoral integrity risks, with a particular focus 
on how we can prevent the harassment and intimidation of electoral workers- particularly where this is 
posted online 

4.  Discussion of the FE24/25 version of the Online Platform Scenarios, which, although similar to the 

Referendum scenarios, has had some updates 

5.  Any other updates Google/YouTube would like to cover, e.g. developments in genAI 

Please let me know if you would like to discuss or clarify any of this prior to the meeting- I’d be very happy 
to do so. 

Cheers, 

________________________________________________________________________________ 

1

s22s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47F

--- Page 14 ---

Microso(cid:332) Teams Need help?  

Join the mee(cid:415)ng now  
Mee(cid:415)ng ID: 

Passcode: 

For organizers: Mee(cid:415)ng op(cid:415)ons  

To help p o ect y ou  p iv acy  M c osoft Off ce p ev ented au omat c download of th s pictu e f om the Inte net

This mee(cid:415)ng invita(cid:415)on was generated by the AEC Microso(cid:332) Teams instance 

________________________________________________________________________________ 

2

s47Es47E

--- Page 15 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Tuesday, 25 February 2025 10:43 AM

>

Re: Google & YouTube x AEC: Federal Election [SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

-non-Marketing Googlers 

Hi 

, 

Thanks so much for sharing this! Our strong preference would be for videos that fit the YT format - 
so either longform or Shorts but ideally not square - as well as content made specifically for the 
upcoming election in 2025. 

Will check in with you closer to the date to finalise the list. 

Thanks again! 

To help p otect y ou  p iv acy  Mic osoft Office p ev en ed automa ic download of this p c u e f o  
nte net

Associate Product Marketing Manager 
YouTube, AUNZ 

On Fri, Feb 14, 2025 at 3:47 PM 

 wrote: 

Hi both, 

Sounds great! Here is the link as well to the new YouTube playlist. We will be adding a few more videos shortly but 
will keep in mind the advice that the videos must be loaded into the playlist at least 7 days prior to launch. 

Cheers, 

 | Digital and Social Media Manager 

Media and Digital Engagement 

Australian Electoral Commission 

T: 

 X: 

1

s22s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47E

--- Page 16 ---

From:
Sent: Friday, 14 February 2025 3:35 PM 
To: 
Cc:

>  

> 

Subject: Re: Google & YouTube x AEC: Federal Election [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

,  

Happy Friday! 

HPP launch dates accordingly and update this thread.  

 Once the election date is announced, we will adjust the 

Thank you,  

On Fri, Feb 14, 2025 at 2:59 PM 

> wrote: 

Hi 

, 

Thanks so much for your feedback! Please see my notes below. 

2

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47E

--- Page 17 ---

Plan on a Page 

 Updated 

Promo 1: How to Vote 

 Updated with amended creative 

Promo 2: AEC Playlist 

 Updated with amended creative 

Promo 3: Where to Vote 

 Updated with amended creative 

Promo 5: Results 

 Updated 

HPP 

 Will leave for 

 or 

 to respond in time 

Really appreciate your attention to detail and thanks for taking the time to review! Please note 
that all the creative in the deck is just for presentation only, and the on-platform promotions will 
be built out by our internal teams within our systems in the coming weeks with numerous rounds 
of checks, meaning each promo will be consistent across format with the creative as it stands 
now. 

Let me know if you have any questions, and it would be great to touch base next week in our 
other chain if you have any further thoughts about the custom playlist for Promo 2. 

Thanks again and hope you have a lovely weekend. 

Regards, 

To help p otect y ou  p iv acy  Mic osoft Office p ev en ed automa ic download of this p c u e f o  
nte net

Associate Product Marketing Manager 

3

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47F

--- Page 18 ---

YouTube, AUNZ 

On Thu, Feb 13, 2025 at 2:27 PM 

> wrote: 

Hi 

, 

Thanks for sending this through. We have a few comments below! Happy to discuss any of them further. 

Plan on a page:  

 

.  

Promo1: Statement banner. How to vote 

Promo 2: AEC playlist 

 

Promo 3: Where to vote 

 

Promo 5: Results 

 

HPP: Enrolment reminder 

4

s47Fs47Fs47Es47Es47Es47Es47E

--- Page 19 ---

, a
Cheers,

Se | Digital and Social Media Manager

Media and Digital Engagement

Australian Electoral Commission

| rs

AEC Make sure you're enrolled to vote.
Visit www.aec.gov.au
v

From:
Sent: Wednesday, 12 February 2025 3:23 PM

Subject: Re: Google & YouTube x AEC: Federal Election [SEC=OFFICIAL]

Hi AEC team,

Hope you're having a great week so far.

--- Page 20 ---

Just confirming on the YouTube side, we've managed to update the creative and CTA links as 
requested in the feedback and the deck is updated to reflect those changes. 

Next Steps 

 
 

 

[this week] YouTube to seek internal Global approvals for campaign creative and CTAs 
[when available] AEC to confirm contents of bespoke custom playlist for Promo 2 (I've 
connected with 
[when available] Google to confirm new Doodle design  

 separately on this) 

Please let us know if you have any further questions at this stage! 

Regards, 

To help p otect y ou  p iv acy  Mic osoft Office p ev en ed automa ic download of this p c u e f o  
nte net

Associate Product Marketing Manager 

YouTube, AUNZ 

On Mon, Feb 10, 2025 at 1:57 PM 

> wrote: 

Hi 

,   

Thank you for explaining! That's perfect, thank you.  

Best,  

6

s47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47F

--- Page 21 ---

On Mon, Feb 10, 2025 at 11:17 AM [i rt:
Morning Ba

| did thank you, | hope you did as well! Apologies | should have explained that further.

Please let me know if you have any further questions.

Cheers,

EE | Digital and Social Media Manager

Media and Digital Engagement

Australian Electoral Commission

7 rs

AEC Make sure you re enrolled to vote.
Visit www.aec.gov.au
v

From:

Sent: Monday, 10 February 2025 11:00 AM
To
Cc

Subject: Re: Google & YouTube x AEC: Federal Election [SEC=OFFICIAL]

--- Page 22 ---

Hope you had a great weekend!

Thanks,

On Fri, Feb 7, 2025 at 4:05 PM i wrote:
i

Sounds good, thank you!

To save others on the thread - will kick things off with you separately to discuss the playlist.

Associate Product Marketing Manager

YouTube, AUNZ

Hey

--- Page 23 ---

No worries — completely understand that. Would be a nice thing to happen but not a roadblock in my eyes if
unachievable.

Great — very happy to create a bespoke playlist. Is there a deadline you would ideally like this by? If you have
any thoughts or preferences of what should be included in the playlist please let us know. Otherwise, we'll
just go with what we think is best.

Cheers,

SE | Digital and Social Media Manager

Media and Digital Engagement

Australian Electoral Commission

AEC Make sure you're enrolled to vote.
Visit www.aec.gov.au
?

From:
Sent: Friday, 7 February 2025 2:47 PM

Subject: Re: Google & YouTube x AEC: Federal Election [SEC=OFFICIAL]

--- Page 24 ---

Thanks so much for getting this back over to us - really appreciate it.

For the playlist, we're happy to lean on your preference for whichever content you're most
wanting to surface with voters BMJ mentioned that he'd be interested in creating a
bespoke playlist as current playlists are very broad and include more specialised content

such as ). My
recommendation would be to collate a bespoke playlist of either your most widely relevant
or best performing videos., and I'm more than happy to work with you on curating this!

Let me know what you think and thanks again for your collaboration on this!

Regards,

Associate Product Marketing Manager

YouTube, AUNZ

On Fri, Feb 7, 2025 at 2:14 Pr ES wot:

10

--- Page 25 ---

Thank you for sharing those resources and your time earlier this week.  

Please see the below our feedback as mentioned in the meeting and following a review of the 
assets: 

Cheers, 

11

s47Fs47E

--- Page 26 ---

| Digital and Social Media Manager 

Media and Digital Engagement 

Australian Electoral Commission 

T: 

12

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--- Page 27 ---

From:
Sent: Thursday, 6 February 2025 4:53 PM
To

Ce:

Subject: RE: Google & YouTube x AEC: Federal Election [SEC=OFFICIAL]

cay

Will come back to you tomorrow on it.

Cheers

EE | Director

Media & Digital Engagement

Australian Electoral Commission

7: SX: a Ma

AE GCG Make sure you're enrolled to vote.
Visit www.aec.gov.au
.

From:
Sent: Thursday, 6 February 2025 4:51 PM

13

--- Page 28 ---

Subject: Re: Google & YouTube x AEC: Federal Election
Hi AEC team,

Hope you're all well and having a great week. Just wanted to follow up on
feedback/approvals for our Elections promotions that we spoke about on Tuesday across
our Google/YouTube platforms.

On the YouTube side, we're hoping to feed back to our creative agency as soon as
possible in order to keep to some internal timelines, so just checking in to see if there's any
additional feedback you have?

Please see the approvals slide here on which you can note your approvals and any further
feedback.

Thanks again for working with us on this!

Regards,

Associate Product Marketing Manager

14

--- Page 29 ---

YouTube, AUNZ 

On Tue, Feb 4, 2025 at 4:41 PM 

> wrote: 

Hi 

 and team, 

Thanks so much for your time on the call today and lovely to meet you. 

Sharing here the deck we ran you through for your review and feedback. It would be 
fantastic to get any additional amendments for the creative that you didn't share on the 
call as soon as possible so we can amend with our agency. Feel free to comment 
directly into the deck (others off-thread will have to request edit access) or respond via 
email. 

Also sharing here the link to our 'Hit Pause' playlist that 
'Stop and Consider' campaign - for further discussion. 

 noted is similar to your 

Finally, just reiterating that all copy/creative is subject to final internal approvals, and is 
presented only as a reference in this deck. 

Next Steps 

  AEC to provide feedback/sign-off on creative ASAP 
  AEC to clarify CTA links on all posts 
  AEC to confirm content recommendation for Promo 2 video shelf 

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out. Really looking forward to working 
with you on this! 

Regards, 

15

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a
s47F

Associate Product Marketing Manager

YouTube, AUNZ
DISCLAIMER:

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and
delete all copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does
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email or attachments.

pT S47F

Product Marketing Manager (Brand & Reputation) DISCLAIMER:

If you have received this
transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all copies. If this email
or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute waiver of any
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Product Marketing Manager (Brand & Reputation) DISCLAIMER:

16

--- Page 31 ---

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete 
all copies.  If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not 
constitute waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or 
attachments.  

--  

To help p o ect y ou  p iv acy  M c osoft Off ce p ev ented au omat c download of th s pictu e f om the Inte net

Product Marketing Manager (Brand & Reputation)

DISCLAIMER: 

transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all copies.  If this email or 
any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute waiver of any 
confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

If you have received this 

17

s47Fs47F

--- Page 32 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Monday, 3 March 2025 10:20 AM

Defending Democracy Unit; 
Re: FOR INFO: YouTube video reported yesterday - claims a digital ID will be 
required for FE25 [SEC=OFFICIAL]

; Social Media

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

,  

Thanks again for bringing this video to our attention.  I can confirm that the channel has now been 
terminated and as a result, the video is no longer available.  

Cheers,  

To hel  
p o ec  y ou  
p iv ac  
M c o s ft 
O fice 
p ev en ed 
au o m ic  
downl ad of 
this p c u e  
f om the  
In te n t

YouTube Government Affairs and Public Policy - 
Australia and New Zealand 

On Fri, Feb 28, 2025 at 9:55 AM 
Hi 

,  

> wrote: 

Thanks for bringing this to my attention.  I will refer to our internal teams now for their review.   

Cheers,  

To help 
p otect y ou  
p iv acy  
Mic o o ft 
Off ce 
p ev en ed 
auto ma ic  
download of 
th s pic u e  
f om th  
n te ne

YouTube Government Affairs and Public Policy - 
Australia and New Zealand 

On Fri, Feb 28, 2025 at 8:36 AM 

 wrote: 

Good morning 

, 

Bringing to your attention a video with 75k+ views that our Social Media Team reported yesterday: 

1

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--- Page 33 ---

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcrxUCoiPIU 

From 5:18 it claims that there will be digital ID requirements for FE25, which is incorrect. Our team 
referred this under ‘misinformation’ as follows: 

The video’s claim that “digital identity verification for voting” has been introduced for the 2025 federal 
election is false. ID is not required when voting in Australian federal elections, and there have been no 
recent changes in this area. 

The erroneous claim presents the following risks: 

 Disenfranchising Australian voters who view the video and believe they won’t be able to vote due to 
not having a digital ID. (Or that they may not be able to vote if they haven’t linked a digital ID to 
their enrolment). 

 Damaging the perceived integrity of Australian federal elections due to the implication voter privacy 

may be compromised. 

As of this morning it’s still up/unlabelled/unmoderated but it was only referred yesterday afternoon. 

The election hasn’t been called yet, but the social media team are already feeling it! 

Also , thanks for the link you shared after our meeting earlier this week. That page is helpful – I think we 
believed it was more complicated than it was. 

Kind regards, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

Australian Electoral Commission 

Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

2

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--- Page 34 ---

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies.  If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or 
attachments.  

3

--- Page 35 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:
Attachments:

Wednesday, 26 February 2025 1:03 PM

 Defending Democracy Unit

FW: Letter to Acting Commissioner [SEC=OFFICIAL]
AEC Letter - February 2025.pdf

 | Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
T: 

 X: 

M: 

From: Jeff Pope 
Sent: Wednesday, 26 February 2025 1:01 PM 
To: Michael Lynch 

; Matthew Haigh 

; 

Cc: Kath Gleeson 
Subject: FW: Letter to Acting Commissioner [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Google’s response to our letter re AI – for your awareness. 

JP 

Jeﬀ Pope APM 
Ac(cid:415)ng Electoral Commissioner 

Australian Electoral Commission 
T: 

From: 
>  
Sent: Wednesday, 26 February 2025 11:00 AM 
To: Jeff Pope 

1

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--- Page 36 ---

Cc: 
Subject: FW: Letter to Acting Commissioner [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi Jeff,  

Please see the attached response from Google. 

I have acknowledged receiving.  

 | Personal Assistant to the Commissioner  

Executive Leadership Team 
Australian Electoral Commission 
 M: 
T: 

 X: 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, 26 February 2025 10:50 AM 
To:
Cc:
Subject: Letter to Acting Commissioner 

>  

> 

> 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Dear 

,  

Please find attached a letter in response to the Acting Commissioner's letter. We would be more than 
happy to discuss this further in our regular meetings and engagements with the AEC.  

We look forward to continuing our productive engagements with the AEC in the lead up to the Federal 
election. 

Regards, 

To help p o ect y ou  p iv acy  M c osoft Off ce p ev ented au omat c  
download of this pic u e f om the  nte net
Google  ogo

Government Affairs and Public Policy 
Google Australia  

Read the latest Google and YouTube reports
See what's trending in Australia today     

2

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--- Page 37 ---

24 February 2025 

Jeff Pope APM  
Acting Electoral Commissioner  
Australian Electoral Commission  
10-12 Mort Street 
Canberra ACT 2600 

Dear Acting Commissioner 

Thank you for your letter of December 17, 2024 regarding Google's commitment to the Tech Accord to Combat 
Deceptive Use of AI in 2024 Elections and its relevance to Australia’s upcoming federal election. We appreciate the 
Australian Electoral Commission's (AEC) ongoing collaboration with online platforms and share your commitment to 
maintaining public trust in Australia's democratic processes. Google recognises the potential risks AI poses to electoral 
integrity and welcomes the opportunity to provide an update on our efforts to address these challenges. 

Google has long been dedicated to supporting democratic processes by: 

●  Surfacing high-quality information to voters 
●  Safeguarding our platforms from abuse, and 
●  Equipping campaigns with best-in-class security tools and training. 

These three pillars are fundamental to maintaining public trust in elections and include our platforms and services 
providing the following: 

●  Google promotes information on how to vote on Google Search's landing page to increase voter awareness 

and democratic participation. 

●  YouTube prominently surfaces content from authoritative sources on the homepage, in search results, and the 

"Up Next" panel for election news and information. 

●  Google monitors and tackles coordinated influence operations through the Google Threat Intelligence group, 
which includes intelligence and threat response across Google’s Threat Analysis Group, Cloud Security and 
Mandiant teams. 

●  For over a decade, Google has leveraged machine learning classifiers and AI to identify and remove content 

that violates policies regarding manipulated media, hate and harassment, incitement to violence, and 
demonstrably false claims that could undermine democratic processes. 

●  Google offers free security services like the Advanced Protection Program and Project Shield to high-risk users 
such as campaigners and journalists to ensure they have additional account security protections in place. 

Addressing AI-Related Misinformation 

We understand the AEC's concerns regarding the use of AI to spread election-related misinformation and 
disinformation, including deepfakes and coordinated inauthentic behaviour. Google has implemented several 
measures to mitigate these risks across our products and services: 

●  AI and Generative AI policies: Google has policies that address misinformation and disinformation in the 
context of AI.  For example, YouTube's misinformation policies prohibit technically manipulated content that 
misleads users and could pose a serious risk of egregious harm.  

 Page 1 of 3

--- Page 38 ---

●  Ads disclosures: Google requires advertisers to disclose when their election ads include synthetic content 
that inauthentically depicts real or realistic-looking people or events. This policy applies to image, video, and 
audio content. Google's ads policies already prohibit the use of manipulated media to mislead people, such as 
deep fakes or doctored content. 

●  Content labels on YouTube: YouTube requires creators to disclose when they've created realistic altered or 
synthetic content and displays a label indicating that the content is synthetic. For election-related content, 
YouTube displays a prominent label on the video player for added transparency. 

●  Responsible approach to Generative AI products: Google has prioritised testing across safety risks, 
including misinformation, for Generative AI products like Gemini. Google has restricted the types of 
election-related queries for which Gemini will return responses. 

●  Watermarking: Google attaches invisible watermarks to imagery generated by Google's models using 

SynthID, a watermarking technology developed by Google DeepMind. 

●  Providing users with additional context: "About this image" in Search helps people assess the credibility and 
context of images found online. The double-check feature in Gemini enables people to evaluate whether 
there's content across the web to substantiate a Gemini response. 

Progress Against the Tech Accord Commitments 

Google was among the original signatories of the Tech Accord to Combat Deceptive Use of AI in 2024 Elections. In line 
with our commitments, we have taken steps across our products to reduce the risks that deceptive AI election content 
may pose to the integrity of electoral processes. These steps include: 

●  Developing Model Cards to promote transparency and a shared understanding of AI models 
●  Addressing harmful content through Google's AI Prohibited Use Policy 
●  Proactively testing systems using AI-Assisted Red Teaming 
●  Restricting responses for election-related queries across many Generative AI consumer apps and experiences 
●  Expanding the SynthID watermarking toolkit to more Generative AI tools and more forms of media 
●  Requiring election advertisers to prominently disclose when their ads include realistic synthetic content 
●  Adding Google-generated disclosures for some YouTube Election Ads formats, and 
●  Actively exploring ways to incorporate Content Credentials into our own products and services, including Ads, 

Search, and YouTube, as a Steering Committee member of the C2PA Coalition and Standard. 

Collaboration and Transparency 

Google is committed to transparency and collaboration with industry, government, and civil society. We actively share 
our learnings and expertise with researchers and others in the industry. We engage and collaborate with organisations 
such as the Partnership on AI, ML Commons, and the Frontier Model Forum. We also support the Global Fact Check 
Fund and numerous civil society, research, and media literacy efforts. 

Looking Ahead 

Google's efforts around elections are not limited to a specific timeframe or region. We will continue to support and 
protect elections around the world and in Australia by: 

●  Surfacing high-quality information to voters 
●  Safeguarding our platforms from abuse 
●  Equipping campaigns with best-in-class security tools and training 
●  Applying new learnings to improve our protections for harmful content and create trustworthy experiences 
●  Leveraging machine learning classifiers and AI to identify and remove content that violates our policies, and 
●  Taking a principled and responsible approach to introducing generative AI products. 

 Page 2 of 3

--- Page 39 ---

We are dedicated to working with the AEC to address the challenges posed by Al and uphold the Australian public's
trust in democratic processes and institutions. We value our ongoing relationship and have welcomed the frequent
and ongoing engagement with members of the AEC from the Defending Democracy Unit and beyond. We will continue
to work closely with the AEC to ensure these efforts are understood and that appropriate pathways for escalation and
engagement are in place ahead of the upcoming Federal Election.

We look forward to continuing our collaboration.

Sincerely,
Government Affairs and Public Policy Government Affairs and Public Policy

Page 3 of 3

--- Page 40 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Hi 

, 

Monday, 9 December 2024 10:36 AM

RE: Action items from October meeting, including proposed dates for December 
meeting [SEC=OFFICIAL]

Thanks for your reply. I’ll send a calendar invite shortly to lock in next Monday, 16 December 10am to 11am. 

- will this include the information session about Google, or should we arrange a time for that early next year? 

Happy to discuss if needed. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Friday, 6 December 2024 10:52 AM 
To: 
Cc: 
Subject: Re: Action items from October meeting, including proposed dates for December meeting [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

, 

Thank you so much for following up on your email and our apologies for the delayed response in getting 
back to you. You’re spot on in that the decks have been very full over the last few weeks with the 
legislative and reform agenda.  

We would be delighted to connect before the break. Perhaps we try for 16, 17 or 18. Are those times still 
workable from your end?  

Cheers, 

1

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--- Page 41 ---

To help p o ect y ou  p iv acy  M c osoft Off ce p ev ented au omat c  
download of this pic u e f om the  nte net
Google  ogo

Government Affairs and Public Policy 
Google Australia  

Read the latest Google and YouTube reports
See what's trending in Australia today     

On Thu, 5 Dec 2024 at 11:55 am, 

 wrote: 

Hi 

, 

I realise the two of you would have been exceptionally busy over the last couple of weeks! Just bringing 
this back to the top of your inbox. 

If the below times aren’t workable due to your current workload, just let me know and I’d be happy to 
offer up some times in January. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

Australian Electoral Commission 

Phone:

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Thursday, 21 November 2024 3:52 PM 
To: 
Cc: Defending Democracy Unit <

>; 

2

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--- Page 42 ---

Subject: Action items from October meeting, including proposed dates for December meeting 

Good afternoon 

, 

I hope this email finds you both well and you’re both on track for a relaxing Christmas break. I thought it 
would be good to follow up on a few action items from our last meeting before December arrives, as 
follows. 

Information session 

 

- at our last meeting you kindly offered to set up an information quality session to outline how 
Google search worked, including an element on searches in Gemini. We would like to take you up 
on that offer.  

o  Please let me know what time frames/notice you need to set this up and I would be happy 

to set up some meeting invites 

o  If we work a couple of weeks in advance, most of our working level attendees will be free to 

attend 

Gemini’s incorrect answer about enrolling to vote 

 

- on 23 October we flagged that Gemini was producing an incorrect answer to the question 
“Can I be enrolled to vote if I haven’t completed and enrolment form?”. It appears that Gemini 
now declines to respond this prompt, instead providing the scripted answer in relation to not 
being able to help with elections. I’m not sure if this is based on action you have taken in the 
background, if so, thanks and noted! 

  For a gold star from us it would be great if Gemini provided a link to the AEC’s website when 

Australian users submit queries about elections, although there is some nuance to this given we 
have state electoral management bodies to consider too. We also understand these things are not 
always as easy as they sound. Happy to discuss at our next meeting if this is something you think 
could be pursued. 

Next meeting - December 2024 

  At our last meeting on 23 October, it was agreed it would be useful to set up a post US election 

meeting before we all break for Christmas. Available times in December include: 

o  Monday, 16 December                   9.30am to 11.00am 
o  Monday, 16 December                   1pm to 2pm 

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o  Tuesday, 17 December                   1pm to 2pm 
o  Wednesday, 18 December            9.30am to 10.30am 
o  Wednesday, 18 December            1pm to 2pm 
o  Friday, 20 December                       9.30am to 12pm 
o  Friday, 20 December                       1pm to 2pm 

No problem if this is not a good week in the lead up to Christmas, just give me a steer on a better 
week and I’ll consult calendars accordingly. 

  We will send out an agenda prior the next meeting but note the following from our last meeting. 

o 

o 

 offered to brief on Google’s approach to AI in elections after gaining insight from 

the US presidential election on 5 November 

 offered to provide more information about how content provenance works on 

content uploaded to YouTube at next meeting 

o  Google and YouTube to provide information and insights into Sovereign Citizen promotion 

of misinformation/disinformation respective platforms 

o  Google and YouTube support for the next Australian federal election 
o  AEC to share trends in the election information environment with Google and YouTube 

Lastly, no doubt you are already aware of the Electoral Legislation Amendment (Electoral Reform) Bill 
2024 currently being considered. In case you are not already aware, there is a proposed amendment to 
section 348 (Control of behaviour at polling booths etc.) of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 that 
provides: 

(1A) A person commits an offence if:  

(a)          the person makes an audio or video recording in premises to which this section 
applies; and 

(b)          the recording is made without the permission of the person in charge of the 
premises; and  

(c)           the making of the recording constitutes a contravention of paragraph 348(1)(a); 
and  

(d)          the person:  

(i)            publishes the whole or a part of the recording; or  

(ii)           causes to be published the whole or a part of the recording.  

Penalty: 5 penalty units. 

4

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--- Page 44 ---

Essentially, it will be an offence to get your phone out and video or audio record in a polling place or 
counting centre and post it online without the permission of the officer in charge. Some of the content 
posted online that the AEC was concerned about during past events would be covered by this if/when it 
enacted. Flagging now ahead of our next meeting for discussion. 

Apologies for the lengthy email. Please let me know if you would like to discuss or receive further 
information. 

Kind regards, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

Australian Electoral Commission 

Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies.  If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

5

s47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47F

--- Page 45 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Friday, 12 July 2024 2:53 PM
Defending Democracy Unit

Re: Proposed meeting | AEC & Google [SEC=OFFICIAL]

Categories:

Online platforms

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

,  

Happy Friday! 

Let's lock in 9-10am on Wednesday 24 July.  

If you could please send through to 

 (cc'd) and myself that would be much appreciated.  

Cheers, 

To help p o ect y ou  p iv acy  M c osoft Off ce p ev ented au omat c  
download of this pic u e f om the  nte net
Google  ogo

Government Affairs and Public Policy 
Google Australia  

Read the latest Google and YouTube reports
See what's trending in Australia today  

On Tue, Jul 9, 2024 at 4:37 PM Defending Democracy Unit 

 wrote: 

Hi 

, 

No worries at all, we understand how busy you and the team have been. Grateful for your help in coordinating the 
relevant team members and their availabilities. 

Are there any time zone considerations that we need to take into account? Unfortunately, not much availability in 
the last week of July, but we have 9-10am AEST as a possibility on either the 23rd or 24th of July.  

Let me know if either of those dates would work for you, as well as any team members you’d like to attend, and we 
can get a Teams calendar invite sent out to you.  

Many thanks, 

 (she/her) | A/g Assistant Director  

1

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--- Page 46 ---

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

Australian Electoral Commission 

DDU Line: 

 Direct Line: 

Protected Email: 

From:
Sent: Tuesday, July 9, 2024 3:46 PM 
To: Defending Democracy Unit <
Cc: 
Subject: Re: Proposed meeting | AEC & Google [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

> 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

,  

I hope you and the team are well.  

My sincere apologies for the delay in responding to you. We would welcome the opportunity to continue 
to work closely and positively with the AEC in relation to election integrity.  

Do you have availability towards the end of July? 

We will pull together team members who are able to respond to these matters and prepare appropriate 
briefing materials. If you have anything else you would like us to cover please let me know.  

Look forward to working with you.  

Cheers, 

To help p otect y ou  p iv acy  Mic osoft O fice p ev ented automatic  
download of this p ctu e f om the In e net
Google  ogo

Government Affairs and Public Policy 
Google Australia  

Read the latest Google and YouTube reports
See what's trending in Australia today  

On Thu, Jun 13, 2024 at 11:19 AM Defending Democracy Unit <
wrote: 

> 

Hi 

,  

2

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--- Page 47 ---

I hope you’ve been well. The Australian Electoral Commission has appreciated the productive 
engagement we’ve had with Google in the past, and while the date for the next Australian federal 
election is yet to be determined by the government, we are keeping a close eye on developments in this 
‘year of elections’ around the world, particularly advancements in generative AI technology. 

With that in mind, we are very interested in meeting with representatives from Google’s AI team to 
learn more about the following:  

 Any observations and lessons learned from recent elections around the globe and how 
these experiences are shaping your work on generative AI; 

 How Google is responding to electoral integrity risks when it comes to generative AI 
products like Gemini, with a particular focus on how we can ensure the Australian public has 
access to timely and accurate information about the electoral process; 

 A brief overview of SynthID including how it identifies AI-generated content; 

 Discussing pathways for the Elecoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) and the AEC to flag 
potential issues with you in relation to Australian federal electoral events and AI products like 
Gemini, and whether this would differ from our existing pathway. 

Any assistance you can provide in directing us to the relevant teams to meet with would be much 
appreciated.  

Kind regards,  

 | Senior Project Officer  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

Australian Electoral Commission 

T: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or 
attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

3

s47Fs47Fs47F

--- Page 48 ---

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

4

--- Page 49 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:

Subject:

Categories:

Friday, 17 January 2025 11:03 AM
EIAT

; Defending Democracy Unit; 

Re: Request for meeting with EIAT representatives [SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

Thank you for reaching out to 
Election.  

and myself in relation to preparation for the upcoming Federal 

We would be pleased to meet with the EIAT team and welcome the opportunity to continue our 
engagement with the DDU and AEC more broadly.  

The time provided works for us and we would be happy to work from the agenda as provided by you in 
your email.  

Look forward to speaking with you soon and feel free to reach out with anything further.  

Cheers, 

To help p o ect y ou  p iv acy  M c osoft Off ce p ev ented au omat c  
download of this pic u e f om the  nte net
Google  ogo

Government Affairs and Public Policy 
Google Australia  

Read the latest Google and YouTube reports
See what's trending in Australia today  

On Thu, Jan 16, 2025 at 4:58 PM EIAT <

 wrote: 

Good afternoon, 

, 

I hope this email finds you well and you enjoyed your Christmas break. 

In preparation for the next federal election, the Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) are 
arranging meetings with each of the online platforms. Meetings will be attended by the Defending 
Democracy Unit (DDU, AEC) and representatives from EIAT taskforce agencies will also have the option to 
attend. The EIAT Secretariat would be grateful if you could advise if the following time would be suitable; 
please get in contact if this time does not suit and we will make alternative arrangements. 

1

s22s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47E

--- Page 50 ---

21th of February 2025, 1:00pm – 2:00pm AEDT  

Although an agenda has not been finalised, the following can provide a guide.  

  Potential timing of FE25, if not already announced 
  AEC’s role in the current information environment – education campaigns, activity on social media 
  AEC’s observations from global elections in 2024 and what that may mean for Australia 
  Google / YouTube update  

o  Any changes in policy settings 
o  Confirmation of referral and escalation pathways 

  Google / YouTube’s own observations from elections globally in 2024 including: 

o  Any changes in the online environment, including the use of generative AI 

Please do not hesitate to get in touch for any further clarification. The EIAT Secretariat would be grateful 
if you could please confirm or arrange an alternative time by COB Monday, 20 January 2025 to ensure we 
have enough time to coordinate with taskforce agencies. Please also feel free to forward this invitation to 
other Google / YouTube colleagues as you see fit. 

Kind Regards, 

 | Project Officer  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

Australian Electoral Commission 

DDU Line: 

Email: 

 Direct Line: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

2

s47Es47Fs47Fs47F

--- Page 51 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Wednesday, 18 September 2024 10:45 AM
Defending Democracy Unit

Re: Request for October meeting with AEC Defending Democracy Unit 
[SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Not a problem!  

Are there any times after 9am? With the kids it can be a bit challenging to make at 8am work.  

Cheers, 

To help p o ect y ou  p iv acy  M c osoft Off ce p ev ented au omat c  
download of this pic u e f om the  nte net
Google  ogo

Government Affairs and Public Policy 
Google Australia  

Read the latest Google and YouTube reports
See what's trending in Australia today  

On Wed, 18 Sep 2024 at 10:19 AM, Defending Democracy Unit 
wrote: 

Hi 

My absolute sincerest apologies, I thought I had replied to your email about timings. Unfortunately, we ended up 
having another meeting in that timeslot, but we are still very keen to catch up. 

Please let me know if any of the following times suit: 

  Monday, 30 September 8am to 9am 
  Tuesday, 1 October 8am to 9am 
  Thursday, 3 October 8am to 9am 
  Friday, 4 October 8am to 9am 

Thanks for being kind enough to follow up and looking forward to hearing from you. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

1

s22s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Fs47F

--- Page 52 ---

Australian Electoral Commission 

Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

From: 
Sent: Tuesday, September 17, 2024 9:31 PM 
To: Defending Democracy Unit 
Cc: 

 Matthew Haigh 

Subject: Re: Request for September meeting with AEC Defending Democracy Unit [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi 

Just wanted to check in on this? Let us know when would work for us to meet again.  

Cheers, 

To help p otect y ou  p iv acy  Mic osoft O fice p ev ented automatic  
download of this p ctu e f om the In e net
Google  ogo

Government Affairs and Public Policy 
Google Australia  

Read the latest Google and YouTube reports 
See what's trending in Australia today  

On Mon, Sep 9, 2024 at 1:54 PM 

 wrote: 

Hi 

Thank you for contacting us and we would welcome the opportunity to meet again to discuss these 
matters with you.  

Could we please lock in Wednesday 18 September from 9-10am? 

Let us know if you need anything further from 

 or I in the meantime.  

2

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Es47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47F

--- Page 53 ---

Cheers, 

To help p otect y ou  p v acy  M c osoft Off ce p ev ented automat c  
download of th s pictu e f om the Inte net
Google  ogo

Government Affairs and Public Policy 
Google Australia  

Read the latest Google and YouTube reports 
See what's trending in Australia today  

On Mon, Sep 9, 2024 at 8:53 AM Defending Democracy Unit 
wrote: 

Good morning 

 and 

We hope this email finds you well! 

As you would be aware, the AEC is preparing for the next federal election (FE24/25); while the date is 
yet to be determined by government, it could be called at any time with the latest date for it to be held 
being in May 2025. We would therefore like to arrange a meeting with you (and/or appropriate 
representatives as you see fit) in preparation. 

Given you will likely be quite busy in the lead up to the US Presidential election on 5 November, we 
would like to propose a meeting this month. 

At this meeting we would be interested in covering: 

 an update from the AEC on Australia’s electoral integrity environment 

 an update from Google/YouTube about your observations and lessons learned from 
recent elections around the globe and how these experiences are shaping your work 

 how Google/YouTube are responding to electoral integrity risks, with a particular 
focus on how we can ensure the Australian public has access to timely and accurate 
information about the electoral process 

 confirming the options and/or escalation pathways for the EIAT and the AEC to flag 
potential issues with Google/YouTube in relation to Australian federal electoral 
events 

 discuss the (FE24/25) version of the Online Platform Scenarios, which, although 
similar to the Referendum scenarios, has had some updates 

Grateful if you could please advise which (if any) of the following dates would be suitable for a 
September meeting.  

We would be aiming for a one-hour window within the following times. 

3

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--- Page 54 ---

Tuesday, 17 September 8am to 9.30am 

Wednesday, 18 September 8am to 10am 

Thursday, 19 September 8am to 9.30am 

Friday, 20 September 8am to 9.30am 

Very happy to discuss further if needed. 

Kind regards 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

Australian Electoral Commission 

Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete 
all copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or 
attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

4

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47E

--- Page 55 ---

Tuesday, 4 February 2025 9:40 AM

; EIAT

Matthew Haigh; 

; Defending 

Democracy Unit
RE: Rescheduling request [SEC=OFFICIAL]

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:

Subject:

Categories:

Good morning 

Thank you for getting back to us so quickly!  

I will update the calendar invite now.  

I hope you have a great day. 

Kind Regards, 

 | Project Officer  
Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
DDU Line: 
Email: 

 Direct Line: 

From:

 2025 9:35 AM 

To: EIAT  
Cc: 
Unit  
Subject: Re: Rescheduling request [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

 Matthew Haigh ; 

 ; Defending Democracy 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Thanks for reaching out and hope you've been well! 

Not a problem from our end.  

Look forward to meeting on the 26th of Feb.  

Cheers, 

1

s22s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47Fs47Fs47F

--- Page 56 ---

To help p o ect y ou  p iv acy  M c osoft Off ce p ev ented au omat c  
download of this pic u e f om the  nte net
Google  ogo

Government Affairs and Public Policy 
Google Australia  

Read the latest Google and YouTube reports 
See what's trending in Australia today  

On Tue, Feb 4, 2025 at 9:32 AM EIAT

 wrote: 

Hi 

 and 

I hope you are having a great start to your year!  

Unfortunately, we have to reschedule our Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) meeting, 
currently scheduled for the 21st of February at 1:00pm – 2:00pm AEDT.  

Are you both available to meet on 26th February at 1:00pm – 2:00pm AEDT instead? 

Thank you for your understanding and assistance. Looking forward to meeting. 

Kind Regards, 

 | Project Officer  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

Australian Electoral Commission 

DDU Line: 

 Direct Line: 

Email: 

2

s47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Fs47Es47E

--- Page 57 ---

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

3

Document Summary

This document comprises a series of email exchanges and meeting invitations between the Australian Electoral Commission's (AEC) Defending Democracy Unit (DDU) and Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT), and representatives from Google and YouTube. The correspondence, spanning from June 2024 to March 2025, details ongoing collaborative efforts focused on safeguarding electoral integrity ahead of the 2025 Federal Election (FE25). Key discussions revolve around:

Scheduled Engagements: Multiple meetings and check-ins are planned and confirmed, indicating a structured and continuous dialogue.
AI and Misinformation: Deep dives into Google's approach to Artificial Intelligence (AI) in elections, including lessons from the US presidential election, content provenance, AI-generated content (AIGC) detection (e.g., SynthID), and policies regarding synthetic content and deepfakes.
Content Moderation & Escalation: Discussions on established referral and escalation pathways for problematic content, exemplified by the successful removal of a YouTube video falsely claiming digital ID requirements for FE25.
Media Literacy and Authoritative Information: Collaboration on YouTube's 2025 election campaign, including AEC feedback on promotional creative and the creation of bespoke playlists to promote accurate electoral information and media literacy initiatives (e.g., "Hit Pause" campaign).
Security & Policy Updates: Google outlines its broader commitment to electoral integrity, including surfacing high-quality information, safeguarding platforms from abuse, offering cybersecurity tools (e.g., Advanced Protection Program, Project Shield), and adhering to initiatives like the Tech Accord to Combat Deceptive Use of AI.
Challenges: Specific issues addressed include misinformation related to "Sovereign Citizen" movements and concerns regarding online harassment of electoral workers. The AEC also flags proposed legislative changes impacting recording in polling places.

Relevance to FOI Request

This document is highly relevant to the FOI request as it directly demonstrates the "extensive interactions" and "formal letters" between the AEC and Google/YouTube. It provides concrete examples of how these platforms are "collaborating with the AEC's Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) and Defending Democracy Unit (DDU)" to safeguard FE25. Specifically, it reveals:

Countering Misinformation and Disinformation: Direct engagement on identifying and removing false content (e.g., digital ID claims) and discussions about specific misinformation narratives (Sovereign Citizen).
Managing AI-Generated Content (AIGC): A central theme, with explicit agenda items and detailed responses from Google on detection (SynthID), labeling, provenance initiatives, policy updates (e.g., AI content disclosure, Gemini restrictions), and adherence to the Tech Accord.
Applying Lessons from Global Elections: A recurring agenda point, confirming that global electoral experiences, particularly regarding AI, are actively informing FE25 preparations.
Streamlining Referral and Escalation Pathways: Explicit confirmation and practical application of direct communication channels for flagging problematic content.
Supporting Media Literacy Campaigns: Detailed collaboration on YouTube's public information campaigns and the creation of bespoke AEC content to promote accurate information.
Platform Preparedness: Evidence of Google/YouTube updating policies, offering cybersecurity tools, and establishing dedicated working groups to ensure a secure and credible information environment for FE25.

AI Generated

Documents 47-54 - TikTok - Compiled Documents.pdf (pdf)

Download file

--- Page 1 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Subject:

Attachments:

Categories:

Wednesday, 12 March 2025 8:39 PM
Defending Democracy Unit; 
FW: [External] Letter from the Commissioner | TikTok’s commitment to the ‘AI 
Elections Accord’ and Australia’s Upcoming Federal Election [SEC=OFFICIAL]
11.03.2025 - Pope, Jeff - TikTok Australia.pdf

For our information and records! 

 | Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 

From: Jeff Pope  
Sent: Wednesday, 12 March 2025 1:31 PM 
To: Michael Lynch ; Matthew Haigh ; 
Cc: 
Subject: FW: [External] Letter from the Commissioner | TikTok’s commitment to the ‘AI Elections Accord’ 
and Australia’s Upcoming Federal Election [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

 ; Kath Gleeson  

Response from TikTok for your awareness. 

Regards 

JP 

Jeﬀ Pope APM 
Ac(cid:415)ng Electoral Commissioner 

Australian Electoral Commission 

1

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47Fs22

--- Page 2 ---

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, 12 March 2025 10:30 AM 
To: Jeff Pope 
Cc: Rebecca Borys 
Subject: FW: [External] Letter from the Commissioner | TikTok’s commitment to the ‘AI Elections Accord’ 
and Australia’s Upcoming Federal Election [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

Hi Jeff 

Please see attached response from TikTok. 

 | Personal Assistant to the Commissioner  

Executive Leadership Team 
Australian Electoral Commission 

From: 
Sent: Wednesday, 12 March 2025 10:22 AM 
To: 
Cc: 

Subject: Re: [External] Letter from the Commissioner | TikTok’s commitment to the ‘AI Elections Accord’ 
and Australia’s Upcoming Federal Election [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Dear 

My apologies for the delay, please find attached our reply to the Acting Commissioner. 

Kind regards, 

On Tue, Dec 17, 2024 at 1:24 PM 

Dear 

Thank you for the email, acknowledging its receipt. 

2

 wrote: 

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47F

--- Page 3 ---

Kind regards, 

On Tue, Dec 17, 2024 at 1:05 PM 

 wrote: 

Dear Ms 

Please see the attached letter from the Acting Commissioner, Mr Jeff Pope. 

Regards 

| Personal Assistant to the Commissioner  

Executive Leadership Team 

Australian Electoral Commission 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or 
attachments.  

3

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47F

--- Page 4 ---

cd TikTok

11 March 2025

er
ioner

CC: [a

Dear Acting Commissioner,

Thank you for the Australian Electoral Commission's (AEC’s) ongoing engagement with TikTok
and for recently joining the platform to reach over 9.5 million Australian users.

We are protecting the integrity of our platform during the upcoming Australian Federal
election, including removing content that violates our strict Community Guidelines and
supporting civic and electoral integrity. As emphasised in our recent direct engagement with
the Australian Electoral Commission, including members of the Electoral Integrity Taskforce,
we continue to invest in our Trust & Safety function, maintain our fact-checking infrastructure,
including in Australia, and treat Federal elections with the seriousness they warrant, noting
many of the global concerns you raise.

As part of this ongoing work, in 2024 we updated our Civic and Election Integrity policies to
provide greater clarity around protections for election workers, or observers, who might face
intimidation or harassment in the course of these critical events. We also continue to refine
our AI-Generated Content (AIGC) policies to respond to emerging trends and threats. These
policies now require users to label AIGC content, using in-app features, and we also apply
auto-labelling ourselves. We recognise that even when appropriately labelled, AIGC and edited
media may still be harmful. We do not allow content that shares or shows fake authoritative
sources or crisis events, or falsely shows public figures in certain contexts including being
bullied, making an endorsement, or being endorsed. In these instances, we will remove the
violative content through proactive moderation, user reports, and reports as escalated by the
AEC.

Noting the global threat landscape, including around elections, in 2024 we also expanded our
state-affiliated media policies to further address state-affiliated media accounts that attempt
to reach communities outside their home country on current global events and affairs. When

--- Page 5 ---

we  identify  these  accounts,  they  will  become  ineligible  for  recommendation,  which  means 
their  content  won't  appear  in  the  For  You  feed  -  the  primary  way  TikTok  users  discover 
content. In addition, if these accounts advertise on our platform, they will not be allowed to 

advertise  outside  of  the  country  with  which  they  are  primarily  affiliated.  Importantly,  in 
relation to Covert Influence Operations, in 2024, we also introduced monthly public reporting, 
which we publish on our Transparency Centre.1 These reports disclose the detection source, 
the  target  location(s)  of  such  operations,  the  number  of  accounts  in  a  network,  and  the 
number of followers those accounts might have had. We leverage our global team's expertise 

and insights in relation to any potential threats in Australia and, where we detect these, we 
disclose them.  

For  the  upcoming  federal  election  in  Australia,  TikTok  has  established  a  dedicated  core 
working group to assess and respond to reports we receive from the AEC, ensure moderation 

systems  are  up-to-date,  and  adapt  to  unfolding  events  as  they  might  emerge  during  the 
electoral period (including content related trends, whether concerning AICG or other types of 
content).  

We have taken specific actions to support the safety and integrity of the 2025 Federal Election, 

including:  

1.  Upholding our prohibition on paid political advertising on-platform. This includes both 
traditional  paid  advertisements  and  creators  receiving  compensation  to  support  or 
oppose a candidate. 

2.  Maintaining an active TikTok reporting portal access for the AEC to report content of 

concern.  

3.  Providing re-direction, in-app, to authoritative election-related information for content 
concerning  the  federal  election,  including  linking  to  the  AEC's  website  and  TikTok 
account. 

4.  Conducting  impersonation  sweeps  for  accounts  that  are  verified  as  belonging  to 
Australian political candidates, including existing elected Members and Senators, with 
appropriate enforcement action taken as a result.  

5.  Issuing policy guidance specific to the election for our moderation system, including 

guidance that covers AIGC.  

6.  Establishing a pathway for communication with other government agencies, including 
as it concerns the safety of Members of Parliament, to enable a timely response to 
issues that may arise in the Australian community during the electoral period.  

1 Available at https://www.tiktok.com/transparency/en/covert-influence-operations.  

2

--- Page 6 ---

cd TikTok

We are happy to clarify any of these matters via further discussion with the AEC, and we look
forward to working alongside the AEC to ensure a safe 2025 Federal Election on TikTok.

Yours sincerely,

Memector of Public Policy |

TikTok Australia

--- Page 7 ---

Monday, 17 February 2025 9:16 AM

; Defending Democracy Unit

Meeting reminder and advance notice of questions during EIAT Chair's brief 
[SEC=OFFICIAL]

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Categories:

Good morning

Ahead of our mee(cid:415)ng today at 1pm , I just wanted to give you the heads up about a couple of ques(cid:415)ons the EIAT TF 
Chair, Ma(cid:425) Haigh, will ask you over the course of the update from the AEC/EIAT.  

  What are some of the posi(cid:415)ve ways TikTok has been used during an elec(cid:415)on? (For example, community 
educa(cid:415)on campaigns, encouraging people to enrol and to vote. We note some reputable sources such as 
the ABC have posted ‘How To Vote’ videos.) 

  Does the TikTok algorithm give priority to authorita(cid:415)ve sources of informa(cid:415)on about an elec(cid:415)on? For 

example, AEC, ABC and other authorita(cid:415)ve sources of informa(cid:415)on. 

  Does TikTok have any elec(cid:415)on speciﬁc ﬁlters (no(cid:415)ng Snap has something, but this may work diﬀerently on 

TikTok) 

  Have referral pathways changed since the 2023 referendum? 
  Have there been any changes to TikTok’s processes or referral pathways for legal referrals? 
  We’re aware that the use of AI to enable the spread of mis and disinforma(cid:415)on remains an existen(cid:415)al 
challenge for everyone in the online environment, including TikTok. Given reports of AI enabled 
misinforma(cid:415)on on TikTok (Network of TikTok accounts using AI to spread poli(cid:415)cal misinforma(cid:415)on, report 
ﬁnds | Mashable , TikTok Content Farms Use AI Voiceovers to Mass-Produce Poli(cid:415)cal Misinforma(cid:415)on - 
NewsGuard) during last year’s elec(cid:415)ons: 

o  What did TikTok learn from this and has this ben the catalyst for any changes? 
o  What guardrails will TikTok have in place for the Australian elec(cid:415)on? 

I trust most of these will be pre(cid:425)y straight forward but wanted to give you a bit of advance no(cid:415)ce. Apologies its 
arriving on the day of the mee(cid:415)ng but I had to take some unforeseen leave last week. 

Please let me know if you any ques(cid:415)on or would like any further context. Otherwise, we will see you at 1pm. 

Cheers, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
Phone: 

 | DDU Group Line: 

 | Protected email: 

1

s 22s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Es 47Fs 47F

--- Page 8 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:

Hi 

EIAT
Tuesday, 4 February 2025 11:27 AM

 .; EIAT

 Defending Democracy Unit; 

RE: [External] Request for meeting with EIAT representatives [SEC=OFFICIAL]

Thank you for your reply. I have sent a calendar invite to you and 
other colleagues.  

, please feel free to share with any 

I hope you have a great day. 

Kind Regards, 

 (She/Her) | Project Officer  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
DDU Line: 
Email:

 Direct Line:

 .  

From: 
Sent: Monday, 3 February 2025 5:23 PM 
To: EIAT  
Cc: 
Subject: Re: [External] Request for meeting with EIAT representatives [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

 ; Defending Democracy Unit ; 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Dear AEC team  

Thanks so much for your patience while we confirmed our team's availability. We can make the nominated 
time work for us all, and we look forward to seeing you then. 

I've copied my colleague, 

, who will be taking on the electoral work in our team for AUNZ. 

 will be in attendance and will also be your primary go-to person.  

Also joining us for our call will be familiar to you already, 
and Safety), I will be there too. 

 (both from Trust 

Speak soon. 

1

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--- Page 9 ---

Kind regards, 

On Thu, Jan 16, 2025 at 4:55 PM EIAT 

 wrote: 

Good afternoon, 

I hope this email finds you well and you enjoyed your Christmas break. 

In preparation for the next federal election, the Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) are 
arranging meetings with each of the online platforms. Meetings will be attended by the Defending 
Democracy Unit (DDU, AEC) and representatives from EIAT taskforce agencies will also have the option to 
attend. The EIAT Secretariat would be grateful if you could advise if the following time would be suitable; 
please get in contact if this time does not suit and we will make alternative arrangements. 

17th of February 2025, 1:00pm – 2:00pm AEDT  

Although an agenda has not been finalised, the following can provide a guide.  

  Potential timing of FE25, if not already announced 
  AEC’s role in the current information environment – education campaigns, activity on social media 
  AEC’s observations from global elections in 2024 and what that may mean for Australia 
  TikTok update  

o  Any changes in policy settings 
o  Confirmation of referral and escalation pathways 

  TikTok’s own observations from elections globally in 2024 including: 

o  Any changes in the online environment, including the use of generative AI 

Please do not hesitate to get in touch for any further clarification. The EIAT Secretariat would be grateful 
if you could please confirm or arrange an alternative time by COB Monday, 20 January 2025 to ensure we 
have enough time to coordinate with taskforce agencies. Please also feel free to forward this invitation to 
other TikTok colleagues as you see fit. 

Kind Regards, 

2

s 47Es 47Fs 47F

--- Page 10 ---

| Project Officer  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

Australian Electoral Commission 

DDU Line: 

 Direct Line: 

Email: 

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

3

s 47Es 47Fs 47Fs47F

--- Page 11 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Subject:

Categories:

Wednesday, 22 January 2025 6:36 AM
EIAT
Re: [External] Request for meeting with EIAT representatives [SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Dear 

 thank you so much for the email. Acknowledging its receipt and we'll confirm availability soon.  

Kind regards, 

On Thu, Jan 16, 2025 at 4:55 PM EIAT 

 wrote: 

Good afternoon, 

I hope this email finds you well and you enjoyed your Christmas break. 

In preparation for the next federal election, the Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) are 
arranging meetings with each of the online platforms. Meetings will be attended by the Defending 
Democracy Unit (DDU, AEC) and representatives from EIAT taskforce agencies will also have the option to 
attend. The EIAT Secretariat would be grateful if you could advise if the following time would be suitable; 
please get in contact if this time does not suit and we will make alternative arrangements. 

17th of February 2025, 1:00pm – 2:00pm AEDT  

Although an agenda has not been finalised, the following can provide a guide.  

  Potential timing of FE25, if not already announced 
  AEC’s role in the current information environment – education campaigns, activity on social media 
  AEC’s observations from global elections in 2024 and what that may mean for Australia 
  TikTok update  

o  Any changes in policy settings 
o  Confirmation of referral and escalation pathways 

  TikTok’s own observations from elections globally in 2024 including: 

o  Any changes in the online environment, including the use of generative AI 

Please do not hesitate to get in touch for any further clarification. The EIAT Secretariat would be grateful 
if you could please confirm or arrange an alternative time by COB Monday, 20 January 2025 to ensure we 
have enough time to coordinate with taskforce agencies. Please also feel free to forward this invitation to 
other TikTok colleagues as you see fit. 

Kind Regards, 

 (She/Her) | Project Officer  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

1

s 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47Fs 47E

--- Page 12 ---

Australian Electoral Commission 

DDU Line: 

Email:

DISCLAIMER: 

If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

2

s 47Fs 47Fs 47E

--- Page 13 ---

From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:

Subject:

Thursday, 19 September 2024 6:24 PM

Defending Democracy Unit; Matthew Haigh; 

Re: [External] Request for September meeting with AEC Defending Democracy Unit 
[SEC=OFFICIAL]

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi there  

We could meet on Wednesday the 9th at 3:30 if that was suitable? 

Thank you for the patience in confirmation. 

Kind regards, 

On Thu, Sep 12, 2024 at 1:49 PM 

 wrote: 

Hi 

Thanks for getting back to me and totally understand how busy you must be. 

Let’s go with the week of 8 October. I have checked calendars, and we have the following gaps: 

  Tuesday, 8 October 1pm to 2pm 
  Wednesday, 9 October 3.30pm to 5pm 
  Thursday, 10 October 1.30pm to 3pm 

Let me know if any of these blocks of time work for you and I’ll set up a calendar invite. 

Many thanks, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

Australian Electoral Commission 

 |

 | Protected email: 

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From: 
Sent: Thursday, September 12, 2024 3:14 PM 
To: 
Cc: Defending Democracy Unit 

Matthew Haigh 

Subject: Re: [External] Request for September meeting with AEC Defending Democracy Unit [SEC=OFFICIAL] 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi there  

Thanks so much for your email, we'd be happy to meet with you all. But we do have some restrained 
availability over the few weeks, and teams based in Singapore so later in the day is preferred for us. 

If it's possible to push the meeting until the second last week of September? Alternatively, the week 
starting 8 October would be easier again for us.  

Does your team have availability then?  

Regards, 

On Mon, Sep 9, 2024 at 8:53 AM 

 wrote: 

Good morning 

We hope this email finds you well. 

As you would be aware, the AEC is preparing for the next federal election (FE24/25); while the date is yet 
to be determined by government, it could be called at any time with the latest date for it to be held 
being in May 2025. We would therefore like to arrange a meeting with you (and/or appropriate 
representatives as you see fit) in preparation. 

Given you will likely be quite busy in the lead up to the US Presidential election on 5 November, we 
would like to propose a meeting this month. 

At this meeting we would be interested in covering: 

 an update from the AEC on Australia’s electoral integrity environment 

 an update from TikTok about your observations and lessons learned from recent 
elections around the globe and how these experiences are shaping your work 

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 how TikTok are responding to electoral integrity risks, with a particular focus on how 
we can ensure the Australian public has access to timely and accurate information 
about the electoral process 

 confirming the options and/or escalation pathways for the EIAT and the AEC to flag 
potential issues with TikTok in relation to Australian federal electoral events 

 discuss the (FE24/25) version of the Online Platform Scenarios, which, although 
similar to the Referendum scenarios, has had some updates 

Grateful if you could please advise which (if any) of the following dates would be suitable for a 
September meeting.  

We would be aiming for a one-hour window within the following times. 

Tuesday, 17 September 8am to 9.30am 

Wednesday, 18 September 8am to 10am 

Thursday, 19 September 8am to 9.30am 

Friday, 20 September 8am to 9.30am 

Very happy to discuss further if needed. 

Kind regards, 

| Assistant Director  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 

Australian Electoral Commission 

 |

 | Protected email: 

My hours are 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday 

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copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
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attachments.  

DISCLAIMER: 

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If you have received this transmission in error please notify us immediately by return email and delete all 
copies. If this email or any attachments have been sent to you in error, that error does not constitute 
waiver of any confidentiality, privilege or copyright in respect of information in the email or attachments.  

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From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:

Subject:

Hi 

Friday, 28 February 2025 9:51 AM

 Defending Democracy Unit; 

 Social Media

RE: Copy for TikTok's proposed 'in app' information hub [SEC=OFFICIAL]

Thanks for the quick chat yesterday!  

Federal election guide: Thanks again for doing this – I think it’s a really valuable thing. I’ve tweaked the draft text 
below. If you’re comfortable with what I’ve done, then we’re all happy here at the AEC. Let me know if there are any 
queries or concerns.  

Cheers 

 | Director  
Media & Digital Engagement 
Australian Electoral Commission 

From: 
Sent: Thursday, 27 February 2025 3:34 PM 
To: 
Democracy Unit 
Cc: 
Subject: Copy for TikTok's proposed 'in app' information hub 

 Defending 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the Australian Federal Government. Do not click links or 
open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.  

Hi team 

As discussed on our recent call, please find below the copy we propose including in our in-app election 
hub. It's intended to be simple and refer users to the AEC for authoritative information. 

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If you were able to please review the copy, and provide any feedback? It is very similar to the 2022 hub 
that we partnered on, so hoping this should be a relatively straight forward review. Also chasing the best 
resource for the last category in the copy, I reviewed your website today but couldn't see a neat page for 
the final category to link to. 

[Titles in bold] 

2025 Australian Election guide  
Supported by the Australian Electoral Commission (LOGO if possible or perhaps link to our new account...?) 

Stop and consider 

During an election, people or groups may try to influence the way you vote. 

Stop and consider what you’re seeing, hearing or reading. Check multiple sources of information, 
particularly if you’re not sure of the information's authenticity. For information about the Australian 
federal election - including voting processes and your rights and obligations under Australian law - go to 
the AEC.  

  Tips to ‘stop and consider’  
 

Learn about the voting process  

Ways to vote 
Australia has some of the best voting options in the world.  

If you can vote on election day, then that is what you should do. If you can’t make it on election day you 
can vote during the two-week early voting period – either in-person or via post. Plan your vote according 
to your circumstances. 

  Election day: in your local area or at dedicated interstate voting centres.  

  Pre-polling: in-person at an early voting centre - anywhere around Australia or at an overseas 

voting centre 

  Mobile voting: via a mobile voting team visiting remote communities, residential care facilities, 

some hospitals and a range of other locations of need.    

  Postal voting: if you can't make it to a voting centre 

Head here for more information and options. 

Preferential voting 
Voting in the federal election is compulsory for all Australian citizens aged 18+ on the electoral roll. Know 
how the Australian preferential voting system works before you head to a voting centre 

Where to vote 
Voting locations will be available in the week before the voting period starts.  

-  Find your federal electoral division 
-  Find my nearest voting centre 

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[The second link here will change substantially after the election has been announced] 

Happy to discuss if there are any questions or points of clarity that I can assist with. 

Regards, 

Director of Public Policy, Australia and New Zealand 

To help p otect y ou  p v acy  M c osoft Off ce p ev ented au omat c download of th s pictu e f om the Inte net

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From:
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To:
Cc:
Subject:

Good a(cid:332)ernoon,

EIAT
Thursday, 16 January 2025 4:55 PM

Defending Democracy Unit; EIAT; 

Request for meeting with EIAT representatives [SEC=OFFICIAL]

I hope this email ﬁnds you well and you enjoyed your Christmas break. 

In prepara(cid:415)on for the next federal elec(cid:415)on, the Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) are 
arranging mee(cid:415)ngs with each of the online pla(cid:414)orms. Mee(cid:415)ngs will be a(cid:425)ended by the Defending 
Democracy Unit (DDU, AEC) and representa(cid:415)ves from EIAT taskforce agencies will also have the op(cid:415)on to 
a(cid:425)end. The EIAT Secretariat would be grateful if you could advise if the following (cid:415)me would be suitable; 
please get in contact if this (cid:415)me does not suit and we will make alterna(cid:415)ve arrangements. 

17th of February 2025, 1:00pm – 2:00pm AEDT  

Although an agenda has not been ﬁnalised, the following can provide a guide.  

  Poten(cid:415)al (cid:415)ming of FE25, if not already announced 
  AEC’s role in the current informa(cid:415)on environment – educa(cid:415)on campaigns, ac(cid:415)vity on social media 
  AEC’s observa(cid:415)ons from global elec(cid:415)ons in 2024 and what that may mean for Australia 
  TikTok update  

o  Any changes in policy se(cid:427)ngs 
o  Conﬁrma(cid:415)on of referral and escala(cid:415)on pathways 

  TikTok’s own observa(cid:415)ons from elec(cid:415)ons globally in 2024 including: 

o  Any changes in the online environment, including the use of genera(cid:415)ve AI 

Please do not hesitate to get in touch for any further clariﬁca(cid:415)on. The EIAT Secretariat would be grateful if 
you could please conﬁrm or arrange an alterna(cid:415)ve (cid:415)me by COB Monday, 20 January 2025 to ensure we 
have enough (cid:415)me to coordinate with taskforce agencies. Please also feel free to forward this invita(cid:415)on to 
other TikTok colleagues as you see ﬁt. 

Kind Regards, 

 (She/Her) | Project Oﬃcer  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 
DDU Line: 
Email: 

 Direct Line: 

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Subject:
Location:

Start:
End:
Show Time As:

EIAT meeting with TikTok representatives
MS Teams

Mon 17/02/2025 1:00 PM
Mon 17/02/2025 2:00 PM
Tentative

Recurrence:

(none)

Meeting Status:

Not yet responded

Organiser:

Categories:

Defending Democracy Unit

Good morning / a(cid:332)ernoon EIAT Taskforce members and TikTok representa(cid:415)ves, 

,  

In prepara(cid:415)on for the next federal elec(cid:415)on, the Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT) are 
arranging mee(cid:415)ngs with each of the online pla(cid:414)orms. Mee(cid:415)ngs will be led by the Defending Democracy 
Unit (DDU, AEC) and representa(cid:415)ves from the EIAT taskforce agencies are welcome to a(cid:425)end. The EIAT 
Secretariat would like to thank TikTok representa(cid:415)ves, 
their availability for this selected (cid:415)meslot.  

, for conﬁrming 

Although an agenda has not been ﬁnalised, the following can provide a guide.  

  Poten(cid:415)al (cid:415)ming of FE25, if not already announced  
  AEC’s role in the current informa(cid:415)on environment – educa(cid:415)on campaigns, ac(cid:415)vity on social media 
  AEC’s observa(cid:415)ons from global elec(cid:415)ons in 2024 and what that may mean for Australia 
  TikTok update 

o  Any changes in policy se(cid:427)ngs  
o  Conﬁrma(cid:415)on of referral and escala(cid:415)on pathways 

  TikTok’s own observa(cid:415)ons from elec(cid:415)ons globally in 2024 including:  

o  Any changes in the online environment, including the use of genera(cid:415)ve AI 

EIAT Taskforce agencies are welcome to request further agenda items they would like raised at this 
mee(cid:415)ng for the EIAT Secretariat to consider and can do so by contac(cid:415)ng the Secretariat via email or phone 
call.  

Please do not hesitate to get in touch for any further clariﬁca(cid:415)on. We look forward to mee(cid:415)ng with you 
soon.  

Note: This is a new mee(cid:415)ng due to an administra(cid:415)ve error with the team’s link. Below is the correct link. 

Kind Regards, 

 (She/Her) | Project Officer  

Defending Democracy Unit | Electoral Integrity and Media Branch 
Australian Electoral Commission 

Email: 

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Document Summary

This document compiles email exchanges and a formal letter between the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) (specifically its Defending Democracy Unit (DDU), Electoral Integrity Assurance Taskforce (EIAT), and Commissioner's Office) and TikTok representatives, illustrating their ongoing collaboration to safeguard electoral integrity for the 2025 Federal Election (FE25).

Key Interactions and Discussions:
* September-October 2024: Initial meetings were scheduled and held to discuss AEC updates on Australia's electoral integrity environment, TikTok's observations and lessons from global elections, responses to electoral integrity risks, and the confirmation of referral and escalation pathways. The "Online Platform Scenarios" for FE24/25 were also on the agenda.
* January-February 2025: Further meetings were planned and executed, with the AEC posing specific questions to TikTok. These included queries about positive uses of the platform for electoral education, the algorithm's prioritisation of authoritative information (like the AEC), election-specific filters, changes to referral pathways (including legal referrals) since the 2023 referendum, and crucial lessons learned/guardrails for AI-enabled misinformation observed in previous elections.
* February 2025: Collaboration on developing an "in-app" election information hub. TikTok proposed draft text for a "2025 Australian Election guide" to be included in its app, which the AEC's Media & Digital Engagement team reviewed and approved, aiming to direct users to authoritative AEC information on voting processes and rights.
* March 2025: TikTok sent a formal letter to the AEC Acting Commissioner outlining its comprehensive commitment to protecting platform integrity for FE25.

TikTok's Commitments and Actions Highlighted:
* Policy Updates: Refined Civic and Election Integrity policies to protect election workers and updated AI-Generated Content (AIGC) policies to require user and auto-labelling of AIGC, with a prohibition on harmful AIGC (e.g., fake authoritative sources, crisis events, false public figure endorsements).
* Content Moderation & Trust & Safety: Ongoing investment in Trust & Safety functions, maintaining fact-checking infrastructure in Australia, and committing to removing violative content through proactive moderation, user reports, and AEC escalations.
* Combating Malign Influence: Expanded state-affiliated media policies (restricting "For You" feed recommendations and advertising outside their home country) and introduced monthly public reporting on Covert Influence Operations via its Transparency Centre.
* Operational Readiness for FE25: Established a dedicated core working group to assess AEC reports, update moderation systems, and adapt to emerging content trends during the election period.
* Specific Electoral Integrity Measures:
* Maintaining a prohibition on paid political advertising.
* Providing active reporting portal access for the AEC to flag content of concern.
* Implementing in-app redirection to authoritative AEC election information (website and TikTok account).
* Conducting impersonation sweeps for verified Australian political candidates.
* Issuing election-specific policy guidance for its moderation system, including for AIGC.
* Establishing a communication pathway with other government agencies for timely responses to issues affecting public figures (e.g., Members of Parliament).

Relevance to the FOI Request

This document is highly relevant to the FOI request as it provides concrete evidence of the extensive engagement between the AEC and TikTok to safeguard electoral integrity for the 2025 Federal Election. It directly demonstrates:

Extensive Interactions: Multiple scheduled meetings, detailed email correspondence, and formal letters exchanged between the AEC's EIAT/DDU and TikTok.
Collaboration Mechanisms: Details how TikTok is collaborating with the AEC through direct communication channels, dedicated working groups, and an established reporting portal.
Addressing Key Themes: Explicitly covers the core themes outlined in the FOI request overview:
- Countering misinformation and disinformation: Evidenced by TikTok's policy updates, fact-checking, and reporting on covert influence operations.
- Managing AI-generated content (AIGC): TikTok's specific policies on labeling, auto-labelling, and content removal, as well as the AEC's direct inquiries about AI misuse.
- Applying lessons from global elections: A consistent agenda item for discussions.
- Streamlining referral and escalation pathways: Confirmed active reporting portal and communication channels.
- Supporting media literacy campaigns: Demonstrated through the collaborative development of the in-app election information hub.
Platform Preparations: Highlights TikTok's proactive measures for FE25, including policy updates (e.g., AI content disclosure), the establishment of a dedicated working group, and the facilitation of direct communication to ensure a secure and credible information environment.

AI Generated

AEC FOI Disclosure Log Archive

FOI Request LEX7205

Summary of FOI Request Documents: Engagement with Online Platforms on Electoral Integrity

Main Purpose of the FOI Request

Documents from the FOI Request

Main Content from the FOI Request Documents

FOI Request LEX7205, Schedule of Released Documents [PDF 187KB] (pdf)

LEX7205 documents [ZIP 44.6MB] (zip)

ZIP Contents

Documents 1-2 - X - Compiled Documents.pdf (pdf)

Document Summary and Relevance to FOI Request

Documents 17-21 - Meta - Compiled Documents.pdf (pdf)

Documents 22-46 - Microsoft - Compiled Documents.pdf (pdf)

Documents 3-16 - Google - Compiled Documents.pdf (pdf)

Document Summary

Relevance to FOI Request

Documents 47-54 - TikTok - Compiled Documents.pdf (pdf)

Document Summary

Relevance to the FOI Request