What is an Artificial Intelligence Scam?
While technology has empowered humans to do some incredible things, it is also contributed to a rise in AI scams. Despite the fact that there are many different kinds of fraud, imposter scams are the most commonly reported scam because artificial intelligence (AI) has made it simpler than ever to pose as someone you’re not. According to a global survey by computer security company McAfee, one in four people have either fallen victim to a voice cloning fraud themselves or know someone who has. As the frequency of AI frauds are increasing daily, it is critical now more than ever to stay educated and take preventative measures to safeguard yourself and those close to you from such scams.
The use of artificial intelligence tools has increased in popularity, making it simpler to alter friends’ and family members’ photos, videos, and voices. It was shown earlier this year that speech AI is being used by cybercriminals as a means of targeting individuals.
Indian Scam Rates
A recent research claims that 83% of Indians have lost money in these kinds of frauds, making their country the top victim nation. Indians are falling for schemes where scammers use artificial intelligence to seem like family members in need.
“While artificial intelligence has enormous potential, there is always a chance that it could be misused maliciously by the wrong people. This is especially true with technology. According to Steve Grobman, CTO of McAfee, “this is what we are seeing today with the accessibility and usability of AI tools helping cybercriminals to scale their efforts in increasingly convincing ways.”
According to McAfee Report, 83% of Indian victims said they had a loss of money – with 48% losing over Rs. 50,000. 69% of Indians think that they cannot tell the difference between AI voice and human voice. Moreover, more than 47% of the people know someone or themselves have experienced some kind of AI Voice Scam, which is almost double the global average of 25%.
How scammers are using Artificial Intelligence
Though fraud has been around for centuries, today’s scammers are increasingly using artificial intelligence to carry out even more sophisticated scams. Common examples of AI scams include:
- Voice cloning: AI is used in voice cloning to mimic the voice of another person. When calling a victim, scammers may pretend to be friends or family, making up an emergency and demanding money right away. In addition, fraudsters might try to access victims’ bank accounts at establishments that employ voice recognition prompts as a security measure by using AI voice cloning.
- Phishing: Phishing is a popular impersonation scam in which the perpetrator poses as a reliable source in an attempt to obtain confidential information. Artificial intelligence (AI) can be used by scammers to add customized greetings and enhancethe company’s language, giving phishing messages an even more authentic and convincing appearance.
- Deepfake Images and Videos: Deepfakes are artificial intelligence-generated images, sounds, and videos that have been altered. They give the scammer the freedom to make anyone say or do anything they want before posting it online, be it a famous person or your next-door neighbor. Deepfake schemes aim to persuade viewers that their platform or product is genuine and worthy of investment because it has the support of a well-known or reliable figure in society.
How does the scam take place?
Everybody’s voice is different and hence it is essentially considered the identity of an individual equivalent to the biometric fingerprint. Hence speaking is an accepted way of establishing trust. People use this trust and add the factor of urgency to it to create a stressful situation. When under stress, victims tend to become protective of their loved ones and will do as they are told to. Let us go through an example.
A father receives a panic call from her daughter crying. Before he could ask her, what was wrong, a man got on the line and said, “I want to return your daughter to you, but I would be needing some cash.” The father, however, did not end up giving the money to the scammer. This was the result of the daughter’s mom who was calm and quick witted who called her actual daughter to confirm if she wasn’t being held hostage. Thankfully, she was safe. But her father was convinced that the voice was her daughter’s and was almost on the way to give the kidnapper the ransom.
What You Need to Know About AI Scams
Signs It’s a Voice-Cloning Scam:
- You are contacted out of the blue.
- You are pressured to act immediately, with no time to think.
- The caller is urgently requesting money, usually through a wire transfer, gift card, payment app, or cryptocurrency. These methods of payment make it nearly impossible to get a refund once you’ve been scammed.
- The caller is requesting personal or private information from you.
- You are told to keep the caller’s request a secret.
Signs It’s a Deepfake Scam:
- Look for signs of an altered video including jerky or unrealistic movements, shifts in lighting or skin tone, strange or no blinking, and shadows around the eyes. Listen for inconsistencies.
- Is the speaker doing something totally out of character, like asking for your money or personal information? Deepfake videos often feature strange word choices, stilted language, and choppy sentences. The caller requesting money, usually urgently and through a hard to trace method like a wire transfer, gift card, payment app, or cryptocurrency.
How to Respond:
- Ask questions. Caller ID can be faked. Although a scammer may sound like a loved one, they won’t be able to answer personal questions that only your real loved one would know the answer to. You can ask them to confirm details that aren’t publicly available.
- Be skeptical. Hang up and call the person back, but don’t simply redial the number that called you – call their trusted number. If you can’t reach that loved one directly, try to reach out through another family member or friend.
- Stop and think. Urgency is one of a scammer’s most powerful tools in getting you to do what they want. You can take control of the situation by pausing for a moment to consider the situation rationally.
- Develop a SAFE word for your family and do not share it with outsiders, not even friends. You can have different SAFE words for friends as well.
- Scammers only need to record you speaking for a few seconds to clone your voice. If you receive a call from an unknown number, let it ring through voicemail. Then, if you decide it seems legitimate, you can call back to verify the identity of the person who called.
In the digital age, AI-enabled scams pose a serious and expanding threat, yet they are not unbeatable. Through vigilant awareness of these con games and the implementation of strong defenses, people and institutions can dramatically lower their vulnerability to these intricate assaults. Vigilance and education continue to be our greatest weapons against those who would use artificial intelligence (AI) for evil ends, even as we continue to reap its benefits.
If you suspect that you have been the victim of such a fraud or have come across any suspicious activity, report the incident to Cyber Crime Toll Free Helpline 1930 or register a complaint on cybercrime.
Also Read: Artificial Intelligence vs Human Intelligence: Can AI Truely Replace Human Jobs?
