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ActBlue, a major fundraiser for the Democratic Party, does not require a card verification value (CVV) number for online donations. Requiring a CVV number as a condition of making an online transaction is standard practice across the e-commerce industry to reduce fraud and prevent unlawful foreign transactions. 

U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) sent a letter to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) demanding the agency investigate alarming reports of widespread fraudulent donations by ActBlue. 

Responding to Rubio, the FEC noted the value of CVV numbers in the response. 

• “Similarly, in Advisory Opinion 2007-30 (Chris Dodd for President, Inc.), the Commission approved a requester’s proposed use of credit card security codes to verify the contributor’s physical possession of the credit card as part of its alternative verification process to meet the requirements for matchable contributions under the Presidential Primary Matching Payment Account Act.” 

Following the FEC’s response, Rubio reiterated his calls for Congress to pass his Codification of Verified Values (CVV) Act (S. 491).

“We’ve seen alarming reports of fraudulent donations being reported to the FEC by ActBlue. Cracking down on credit card fraud and foreign political donations used to be a bipartisan idea. This is a common-sense reform that should pass by unanimous consent. If not, those in opposition should be forced to explain why they support allowing foreign money into U.S. elections.”  – Senator Rubio 

Want more information? 

• April 2023: Rubio Demands Answers From FEC On Potential ActBlue Fraudulent Donations
• February 2023: Rubio Reintroduces Codification of Verified Values (CVV) Act
• September 2022: Rubio: Senate Democrats Should Say No to Foreign Donations
• August 2022: Rubio to Introduce Bill Fixing Foreign Donation Loophole Exploited by ActBlue