AI scams can imitate the people you trust most.
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For years, financial scams followed familiar patterns: suspicious emails, fake lotteries, and callers pretending to be an IRS auditor or a representative from your bank. In recent years, though, generative artificial intelligence (AI) has dramatically changed the landscape.
Scammers can clone voices, generate convincing videos, imitate writing styles, and create fake emergencies that feel real. Whether itâs your grandchildâs voice, an email from your boss, or a video that appears to be from a friend in trouble, the technology behind these synthetic identity scams is advancing faster than many people realize.
You donât need to be a tech genius to protect yourself, though. With a healthy level of skepticism, a few practical safeguards, and a plan, you can avoid being taken in by impersonation scams.
Key Points
- AI-enabled tools can mimic voices, faces, and writing styles with deceptive accuracy.
- Emergency scams targeting older adults and families are becoming more prevalent and convincing.
- Slow down and practice good âtech hygieneâ to help reduce your risk of experiencing identity fraud due to AI scams.
Voice cloning fraud and deepfakes
Voice cloning and deepfakes are two ways scammers use digital impersonation to convince you to provide sensitive personal information, or even to send them money.
Voice cloning uses AI to recreate a personâs voice by analyzing audio samples. In some cases, fraudsters only need a short clip pulled from social media videos, including those posted on TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube. Clips from podcasts or voicemail greetings are also sources for samples that can be used to generate realistic-sounding audio.
Deepfakes are AI-generated or AI-altered videos and images designed to look authentic. A scammer can create a fake video call, manipulate facial expressions, or generate content that seems to come from a trusted source. As with obtaining a voice sample, itâs not difficult for fraudsters to find images on social media that they can manipulate to convince you to share information you wouldnât give to a stranger.
Both the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the FBI report that impersonation scams are among the most common forms of fraud. AI tools are increasingly being incorporated to improve realism and allow scammers to scale up their efforts by defrauding more people at once.
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Many AI scams rely on emotional manipulation, an old-school approach that attempts to create panic, urgency, or trust quickly so you act without thinking. Common scams use voice cloning, deepfakes, and writing to appear more convincing. The FTC warns that with the help of AI-generated audio and visuals, scams such as these may be more convincing than traditional robocalls:
- Family (or friend) emergency scam. You might receive a call from someone claiming to be your child, grandchild, or other close relative. Perhaps the scammer claims they are one of your good friends. They might use an AI-generated voice to convince you that youâre talking to a loved one in distress. You agree to help them out by sending money through a wire transfer, cryptocurrency, gift card, or payment app.
- Workplace digital impersonation scam. A boss or coworker might send an email, written in their typical style and using a spoofed address. You might be asked to approve a fraudulent invoice, provide âmissingâ login credentials, share payroll data, or purchase some gift cards on behalf of someoneâfrequently a company executiveâwhoâs âtoo busyâ to do it.
- Romance scam. Deepfakes are especially common in romance scams. A fraudster can create online personas and leave AI-generated voice messages. Itâs even possible to use manipulated visuals to conduct video calls. After building a rapport and convincing you that youâre in love, the scammer might ask for money to visit you or to get out of a temporary jam.
People share a surprising amount of information online, and itâs possible for AI to scrape data from social media profiles. Fraudsters might find family and friend connections and get an idea of who youâre likely to respond to. Armed with this information and with a few clips of audio and video from connectionsâ pages, itâs possible to create a convincing story.
How to protect yourself from AI scams
Although this new generation of AI fraud is quite high-tech, protecting yourself often comes down to a few low-tech habits. These strategies can help reduce your chances of becoming a victim of a digital impersonation scam:
- Create a family safe word. Establish a private word or phrase that only you and trusted relatives and friends know. If someone calls claiming to be one of your loved ones, ask for the safe word or phrase. When sharing the safe word or phrase, do so in person and donât share it digitally. If a scammer is caught this way, change the safe word or phrase.
- Slow things down. Fraudsters need you to be worried and to make split-second decisions. If you receive an alarming call or an urgent email, check with the supposed sender using a different mode of communication. For example, if you receive a call from a grandchild asking for money to get them out of a tight spot, hang up and call their known number. If your boss sends an urgent email asking you to buy gift cards, message them through your companyâs approved system to verify the request.
- Limit the information you share publicly. Although you donât need to delete all of your social media accounts, rethink what you share. Long voice recordings, detailed videos, and highly personal content can provide the material for scammers to use, not only to convince you, but also to entrap someone else.
- Use multi-factor authentication (MFA). Itâs your next line of defense against fraud. In the event your personal information is obtained, scammers can be kept out of your accounts if you have a text code, authentication app, or security key. They might get your username and password, but if they canât authenticate using MFA, your information remains safe.
- Be aware of unusual payment requests. Legitimate organizations, including your company or bank, donât typically ask for gift cards, wire transfers, cryptocurrency, or payment apps. If a loved one seems to be asking you to send money to a payment app account that isnât their usual handle, be suspicious.
- Be cautious with online romantic relationships. Romance scams can unfold over weeks or months, with AI-generated messages, calls, and even video chats used to build trust. Be skeptical if an online relationship quickly turns into requests for money.
Why older adults are targeted by AI scams
Many AI scams specifically target older adults because fraudsters assume they have savings and strong family connections, making them more likely to respond to emotionally manipulative requests for help. Because some older adults are less familiar with AI technology, voice cloning and deepfakes can seem more believable. Emotional manipulation exploits fear, not intelligence, and older adults might be more worried about loved ones or more vulnerable to feelings of loneliness. Learn more about seniors and identity theft.
What to do if you think youâve been targeted by an AI scam
Anyone can fall for these scams. If you believe youâve encountered one, the first step is to stop communicating. Once you become suspicious, end the call.
If youâre concerned about a work email, donât respond. Instead, forward it to your companyâs IT or cybersecurity team. Find out from your employer where to forward suspicious emails if youâre not sure.
Once you stop communicating with the scammer, change your compromised passwords and enable MFA if you havenât already. If money or sensitive financial information may have been involved, call your bank and consider freezing your credit. Report the incident to the FTCâs fraud department (ReportFraud.ftc.gov), the FBIâs Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), or both.
Finally, share your experience with others. One way to help prevent future AI scams is to reduce the stigma around being scammed. Anyone can be defrauded, and itâs not a reflection of your intelligence or character if you are a victim of an AI scam.
Artificial intelligence has made scams more sophisticated, more personal, and harder to detect. Voices, videos, and written messages can now be manipulated in ways that were practically impossible a few years ago. Even so, the fundamentals of fraud prevention remain the same. Slow down, verify requests independently, and follow strong security practices.
This article was most recently revised and updated by Miranda MarquitThis article was most recently revised and updated by Doug Ashburn
