- Fake voice scams generated $11 million in revenue in 2022
- Their potential is exponential with advances in the field of artificial intelligence
- Concrete measures can prevent the worst
The phone rings, it’s the number of a relative. You answer and you hear his characteristic voice. He is in danger and asks you for money. You comply even if you feel something is wrong. You have just been the victim of a fake voice scam. This AI-powered scam generated $11 million in the United States last year. But they should multiply in the future.
To better protect themselves from it, Matthew Wright and Christopher Schwartz, two researchers at Rochester Institute of Technology in the state of New York, have just published an exciting article on the online media The Conversation.
Cautionary advice
They provide valuable advice to the general public, and in particular to pay particular attention to unexpected calls, including from relatives. They consider it necessary to send a mail or e-mail in advance.
They add that the caller’s number should never be relied on because it can be falsified. Therefore, the authors add: “For example, if you receive a call from someone claiming to represent your bank, hang up and call the bank directly to confirm the legitimacy of the call”.
Also, be very careful when the caller asks you for personal information. This applies to your address, date of birth, including the names of your children or your pets! This data can indeed be used with financial institutions by scammers who can enrich themselves at your expense.
Finally, you should know that fake voice scams are often carried out by formidable manipulators. It is therefore necessary to know your own emotional limits and vulnerabilities. The crooks can also detect your political convictions, your financial anxieties and turn these character traits and opinions against you.
Finally, let us recall this terrible experience of voice scam suffered by a 73-year-old Canadian and her husband. The cybercriminals had indeed cloned the voice of their grandson to extort money from them. Luckily for them, a bank employee smelled that something was wrong because another client of the establishment had been the victim of the same subterfuge. You can always re-read our article on this misadventure here.
