AI is fundamentally changing the way we interact online, and scams are a prime example of that.
Before AI was widely accessible, it was easier to spot scams. You knew the telltale signs: A typo-ridden email claiming you won a contest you never entered, or a plea from a prince begging you to send money overseas.
Now, scams are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and that’s in part due to AI.
AI scams are easier and faster to generate, which allows fraudsters to target more victims. They’re also harder to detect, since they’re more personalized and grammatically correct.
Using Generative AI, scammers can create text, audio, videos, and images to make their scams more convincing. That means you need to take extra precautions to protect yourself.
As AI scams become harder to detect, we’re spreading awareness on how to spot them. Read up on the latest AI scams here:
AI scams contain many of the same hallmarks, including:
Next up, we’re covering some of the most common AI scams you may come across:
You receive a call from someone who sounds just like your family member. They claim to be in trouble and ask you to wire them money, fast. It seems suspicious, but their voice is so familiar.
What you’re experiencing is an AI voice cloning scam.
Scammers will use any voice clips they can find of someone online and use it to train AI. The result is a generated voice clip that sounds exactly like someone you know.
How can you spot an AI voice scam? Caller ID isn’t the best reference, because even that can be spoofed. Instead, the best way to verify someone’s identity is to hang up and call their number directly.
Deepfakes are generated images and videos, created using AI that’s trained with real photos and videos of that person.
The result is media that looks incredibly convincing and often perpetuates a harmful message – like encouraging you to invest in something that’s actually a scam.
A common example of this is how scammers create fake videos of celebrities to endorse fake investments. They’re harder to detect than you might think.
Once you “invest” your money, the website may send you AI-generated earning reports claiming your investments are successful – but in reality, the money is long gone.
Find an item online that looks too good to be true? An amazing-looking product paired with a low, low price – what’s the catch?
The ad you’re looking at may be using AI-generated images. If you place an order, the product you receive may be drastically different than what you’re expecting – or it may not arrive at all.
To make sure you’re shopping safely, check out our blog on 7 ways to avoid Facebook Marketplace scams.
To protect yourself, you can:
We hope this article helps you spot and avoid AI scams. To spread the word, share this post with others and help keep them safe them, too!
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