AN ELDERLY carer was scammed out of £20,000 by an AI-generated US Army colonel who promised her £607,000 in cash.
The hyperrealistic computer-generated character convinced the woman to hand over her savings in exchange for the hefty cash sum.
National Fraud HelplineThe AI generated character (pictured) scammed the victim out of £20,000[/caption]
The elaborate scheme involved the scammer pretending that his wife had died and claiming that the victim would be sent a briefcase with £607,000 of life insurance money.
The victim, who wished to remain anonymous, was convinced to pay nearly £10,000 for delivery of the case, and then a further £10,000 to unlock it.
Eventually she grew impatient and broke into it only to find that it contained a blank sheet of paper, confirming the hoax.
The fraudster used personalised AI-generated videos in which the fake colonel claimed that he loved her, and sent gifts via post like cards and flowers, in order to appear convincing.
The victim reported the case to the National Fraud helpline, who is helping to recover the stolen money.
Martin Richardson, a senior partner at National Fraud Helpline, said: “This scam is one of the most elaborate we have ever seen in that it involves AI as well as physical items being sent through the post.”
Last year, £459.7 million was stolen in these types of scams, according to the Payment Systems Regulator.
It comes after telecommunications firm O2 recently released their army of AI scam-busting bots, which are designed to imitate elderly people – common scam targets – and waste fraudsters’ time.
One of these bots, Daisy (D-AI-sy) stalls fraudsters by saying things like: “I remember… Being born in 1945 but the exact date… Oh dear.”
The colonel scammer initially started messaging the victim on dating app Tinder, before sending her realistic AI-generated videos of the fake man which further enhanced his deception.
Scams have become more prevalent and advanced in recent years, with some describing the UK as being in a “scamdemic”.
One survey found the number falling for online love scams in the UK had shot up more than a 25% in the six months to October.
Hundreds of customers at one bank alone handed over around £3.8million to the con between March and August.
That was a 27 per cent jump from just over £3million reported stolen to Santander between August 2023 and this March.
The average loss was £4,500 and customers aged 18 to 93 were targeted.
The bank’s poll of 2,000 people found half had received unsolicited online flirtatious messages they suspected or confirmed to be a scam.
Nearly a third said they would offer money to a romantic partner they had known for less than six months.
But nearly two-thirds reckon they would never fall for a romance fraud.
How to protect yourself from scams
BY keeping these tips in mind, you can avoid getting caught up in a scam:
Firstly, remember that if something seems too good to be true, it normally is.
Check brands are “verified” on Facebook and Twitter pages – this means the company will have a blue tick on its profile.
Look for grammatical and spelling errors; fraudsters are notoriously bad at writing proper English. If you receive a message from a “friend” informing you of a freebie, consider whether it’s written in your friend’s normal style.
If you’re invited to click on a URL, hover over the link to see the address it will take you to – does it look genuine?
To be on the really safe side, don’t click on unsolicited links in messages, even if they appear to come from a trusted contact.
Be careful when opening email attachments too. Fraudsters are increasingly attaching files, usually PDFs or spreadsheets, which contain dangerous malware.
If you receive a suspicious message then report it to the company, block the sender and delete it.
If you think you’ve fallen for a scam, report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or use its online fraud reporting tool.
In the year to June 2024, the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB), run by the City of London Police, received 8,792 reports of romance fraud, amounting to losses of over £94.7 million.
National Fraud HelplineThe fake AI colonel[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
