Scammers use AI to enhance their family emergency schemes

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Scammers use AI to enhance their family emergency schemes

Voice cloning, that's how.

Artificial intelligence is no longer a far-fetched idea out of a sci-fi movie. We're living with it, here and now. Scammers are using AI to clone the voice of your loved one. All they need is a short audio clip of your family member's voice — which they could get from content posted online — and a voice-cloning program. When the scammer calls you, they will sound just like your loved one.

So how can you tell if a family member is in trouble or if it’s a scammer using a cloned voice?

Don’t trust the voice. Call the person who supposedly contacted you and verify the story. Use a phone number you know is theirs. If you can’t reach your loved one, try to get in touch with them through another family member or their friends.

Scammers ask you to pay or send money in ways that make it hard to get your money back. If the caller says to wire money, send cryptocurrency, or buy gift cards and give them the card numbers and PINs, those could be signs of a scam.

If you believe you have been a victim of this type of scam you should promptly report it to the IC3's website at www.IC3.gov. The IC3's complaint database links complaints together to refer them to the appropriate law enforcement agency for case consideration.

Remember - always watch for scams!