(By: District Attorney Summer Stephan) - Artificial intelligence is the buzzword everyone is talking about. From whether you should invest in AI companies, to the fear that it will take your job or the philosophical question about how to control the technology. As you’ve heard me say before, behind every new trend are bad actors waiting to exploit it and in the case of AI, it’s through voice spoofing. Cybercriminals only need a few seconds of voice audio to be able to clone it using artificial intelligence, also known as voice spoofing. Armed with a clone of your voice, scammers call your relatives claiming to be you or a loved one in need of financial help. Already this scam is being reported to law enforcement around the county, and it is only a matter of time before it becomes more prevalent. The fraudulent calls are similar to previous iterations of the grandparent scam or a government agency or utility company calling to say you owe money or will be arrested. The difference is the person calling for help sounds identical to your loved one. Imagine receiving a call and the voice on the other end sounds exactly like your child or grandson saying they are in trouble. They get cut off, then someone pretending to be a lawyer representing your loved one gets on the line explaining that if your grandson doesn’t pay a certain amount, things will get much worse for him. This scenario could propel anyone to hand over money. The most common scam calls include:
The call can appear to be coming from the phone number of your loved one because scammers can inexpensively spoof any phone number. When the number is unknown, the caller has a story about why they are calling from a different phone number. Anyone can be susceptible to this scam because artificial intelligence is so advanced. Here are some tips to help you avoid falling prey to a voice spoofing scam.
If you become a victim of voice spoofing, report it to the FBI’s Internet Crime Compliant Center at ic3.gov or to your local law enforcement agency so they can start an investigation. As your District Attorney, I’m committed to increasing communication and accessibility between the DA’s Office and the public in order to keep you safe. I hope these consumer and public safety tips have been helpful. Comments are closed.
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