AI face-swapping scam: Fraudster dupes man of Rs 5 crore by impersonating his friend

The rapid progress of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has changed our lives, making things easier and faster. However, there are some negative effects too.

Lately, there have been cases of deepfake technology being used for financial fraud.

According to a report by Reuters, in China, an individual fell victim to a substantial financial loss, approximately Rs. 5 crore, due to a scammer exploiting advanced deepfake technology.

The perpetrator utilised face-swapping techniques based on artificial intelligence to impersonate a close friend of the victim during a video call.

By feigning an urgent requirement for funds for a bidding process, the scammer successfully convinced the victim to transfer a significant sum of money.

The truth remained hidden from the victim until later when they realised their genuine friend had no knowledge of the situation.

As a result of their diligent efforts, the police in Baotou City have achieved a significant breakthrough by successfully recovering the majority of the stolen funds.

Moreover, ongoing investigations are being conducted to locate the remaining amount, according to a report by Reuters.

Another scam rocked the city of Arizona, according to a report by WKYT. Jennifer DeStefano, a resident of the state, found herself caught in a distressing incident when she received a jarring call from an unidentified number.

To her astonishment, she recognised her own daughter's voice on the line, filled with tears and desperate pleas for help.

The atmosphere grew increasingly chilling as a man's voice abruptly pierced the air, delivering an ominous warning to Jennifer.

He cautioned her with a bone-chilling tone, strongly advising against involving the authorities while simultaneously demanding an astonishing sum of USD 1 million (approximately 83 Crore INR) as a ransom for her daughter's safe release.

This distressing manipulation was made possible by the utilisation of AI-generated voice cloning technology, which astonishingly replicated the teenager's voice with uncanny accuracy.

But the investigations revealed that the daughter was unharmed, and the call turned out to be a malicious hoax.

Nonetheless, the incident left a profound impact on the victim, shedding light on the potential for emotional manipulation and financial extortion facilitated by advancements in AI technology.