AI scams explained
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is making life more convenient, but it’s also giving scammers new ways to trick people and businesses into handing over money or sensitive information.
The scale is growing fast. Between June 2022 and May 2023, cyber-enabled crime cost the UK £1.7 billion, with banking fraud making up nearly half (£758m).
As these scams become more convincing, it’s important to know how they work and how to protect yourself.
On this page:
Deepfakes
Deepfakes are AI-generated videos, images, or audio that make it look like someone said or did something they did not. Whilst some are used for entertainment, scammers use them for fraud and misinformation. An example of this is fraudsters creating deepfake videos to make it look like well-known celebrities are endorsing fake investment schemes.
What once required expert skills can now be done in minutes using free software like DeepFaceLab and apps like Reface. Advances in AI mean deepfakes are becoming more realistic, making it harder to spot.
Would you notice a deepfake? Try out the BBC Bitesize AI or real quiz.
What to look out for
You should look for:
- unnatural facial expressions or movements
- inconsistent lighting or shadows
- blurry edges around the face or body
- voices that sound slightly robotic or lack natural emotion
Always check the source. If a video comes from an unreliable account or seems out of character for the person depicted, it may be a deepfake.
Voice cloning
Voice cloning uses AI to mimic someone’s voice. Scammers use it to impersonate people and demand money or information. They use it when creating deepfake videos or even to mimic voices of people you know.
According to McAfee, it takes just three seconds of audio to clone a voice. However, over 70% of people say they could not tell a cloned voice from the real thing.
What to look out for
You should look for:
- unexpected voice messages or phone calls asking for money and personal details
- unusual or urgent requests from someone you know
- robotic tone, poor audio quality or odd pauses
- calls from unknown numbers, even if the voice sounds familiar
To protect yourself, set up a safe phrase with family and colleagues, using something only they would know.
If you do receive an unexpected or unusual message or call, phone the person that it was from on a trusted number to check if it was genuine.
Phishing emails
Phishing emails trick you into opening a malicious link or sharing personal information. We used to suggest you look out for spelling mistakes and strange formatting but AI has made them look more convincing.
Recent industry studies show that 80% of adults open AI-generated phishing emails, with 21% clicking the link. These emails often impersonate banks, trusted organisations or employers, sometimes using details from your social media to seem convincing.
Always think, pause and double check requests. Never share personal information, passwords or one time passcodes.
What to look out for
You should look for:
- urgent language like ‘act now’ or ‘suspicious activity detected’
- suspicious email address with odd characters
- generic greetings like ‘dear customer’
- unexpected links or attachments
Password cracking
AI is helping hackers crack passwords faster than ever. A recent industry study found that:
- 51% of passwords were cracked in a minute
- 65% were cracked in less than an hour
- 81% were cracked within a month
Weak passwords, especially ones that are short, simple, or are reused, are most at risk.
How to protect yourself
To protect yourself make sure you:
- use at least 12 characters – mixing upper and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols
- update passwords regularly and do not reuse
- avoid common words or phrases
- enable multi-factor authentication for extra protection
Worried about remembering passwords? A password manager tool can help you store passwords securely.
Read our secure password article to learn more.
Top tips to protect yourself from AI scams
AI scams are becoming more sophisticated, but these steps can help protect you:
- double-check unexpected requests, even from people you know
- use strong, unique passwords and enable multi-factor authentication
- be careful what you share online as scammers use social media to gather information
- make sure your social media accounts are set to private
- keep software and security settings up to date
- stay informed on common fraud threats so you know what to look out for
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