Overview
AI deepfake scams represent a new frontier in fraud, using artificial intelligence to create convincing fake videos, clone voices, and generate realistic images of real people. Scammers use these technologies to impersonate family members in emergency calls, create fake celebrity endorsements for fraudulent investments, manipulate video calls for business fraud, and produce fake compromising content for extortion. As AI technology becomes more accessible, these scams are rapidly increasing.
How This Scam Works
Voice cloning technology creates convincing replicas of family members' voices from short audio samples found on social media or voicemail, used to make fake emergency calls requesting money.
Deepfake videos of celebrities are used to promote fake investment platforms, cryptocurrency schemes, and fraudulent products.
AI-generated images create realistic but fake identity documents, profile photos, and product images for various scam operations.
Real-time deepfake technology can alter appearances during live video calls, enabling business email compromise and romance scams at unprecedented levels of sophistication.
Warning Signs
Real Scam Examples
These are examples of messages used in this type of scam.
[In daughter's cloned voice]: Mom, I have been in a car accident and I am at the hospital. They say I need surgery but I do not have my insurance card. Can you send $5,000 right away? Please do not tell Dad, I do not want him to worry.
[Deepfake video of Elon Musk]: I am excited to announce a new cryptocurrency platform that uses my proprietary AI to guarantee 500% returns. I am personally investing $100 million. Visit the link below to get started with just $250.
How to Protect Yourself
1Establish a family code word
Create a secret code word or phrase with family members that only you know. In an emergency call, ask for the code word to verify the caller's identity.
2Verify before acting
If you receive an urgent call from a family member, hang up and call them back on their known number. If they are truly in trouble, they will answer.
3Be skeptical of celebrity endorsements
No legitimate investment opportunity uses celebrity deepfakes for promotion. Verify any investment through official SEC databases and the celebrity's official channels.
4Learn to spot deepfake signs
Look for unnatural blinking, inconsistent lighting, blurry edges around the face, lip sync issues, and artificial-looking skin textures in videos.
5Use the GetCyberRight Deepfake Detector
Our AI-powered tools can help analyze suspicious audio and video content for signs of deepfake manipulation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Think you have received a scam like this?
Paste the suspicious message into our free AI-powered scam analyzer.
Related Resources
Vishing: Voice Phishing Phone Scams Explained
Vishing (voice phishing) uses phone calls to manipulate victims into revealing sensitive information or making payments....
Investment Scams: Ponzi Schemes, Pump and Dump & More
Investment scams promise extraordinary returns with little or no risk. From Ponzi schemes that use new investor money to...
Sextortion Scams: Blackmail and Online Exploitation
Sextortion involves criminals threatening to release intimate images or information unless the victim pays money. Some s...
Phishing Detection Tool
Related Phishing Attacks resource
Phishing Attack Guide
Related Phishing Attacks resource
Anti-Phishing Training
Related Phishing Attacks resource