Protecting Yourself From Deepfake Scams
Face-swapping and voice cloning sound like something out of a sci-fi movie. But, in reality, these are two common techniques used to create synthetic media—photos, videos or audio that have been manipulated using artificial intelligence (AI).
October is Cyber Security Awareness Month and our Bank of Marin Information Security team wants to help raise awareness of this sophisticated cyber security threat that’s on the rise.
Synthetic media can have legitimate uses including simulation training videos, exploring the new photo features on the latest cell phones, and advertisements, to name a few. However, there are nefarious characters using synthetic media to create deepfakes—videos, photos, or audio clips that have been digitally altered with an unsuspecting person’s likeness to make it appear as if they are saying or doing something they’ve never done.
Chances are you’ve seen a deepfake or two online; images of celebrities endorsing products they claim they’ve never endorsed or—now that we’re in an election cycle—political ads. While currently rare, fraudsters are also using AI-generated technology to create deepfake audio. We expect this trend to continue rising.
Using a short clip of someone’s voice recording, cybercriminals can replicate the voice using AI to make hoax calls. There have been documented cases of fraudsters using deepfake audio of children’s voices to stage hoax kidnappings in hopes of getting frightened parents to pay hefty ransoms. Another scam: a loved one calling to tell you they have been in an accident and need money sent to them immediately. These urgent pleas play on your emotions and may cause you to take immediate action to help your loved one.
We are no longer in an era where seeing—or, in this case, hearing—is believing. Being aware and prepared are key to not falling victim to deepfake audio and voice cloning scams.
- Be mindful of unexpected calls that seem urgent or play on your emotions.
- Question calls with unusual requests.
- Create unique and secret code word(s) or phrase to use with your family in case of an emergency.
- Businesses and their customers can also be targeted. If you receive a call from the leader or trusted representative of a company you do business making a questionable request, hang up and immediately call your business contact to verify this request.
If you believe you have fallen victim to scammers, immediately:
- Change the password of any accounts you may have shared in the fraud attempt.
- If the exchange of money was involved, notify your bank and credit card providers.
For more fraud prevention tips, visit our Fraud Prevention Resource Center
LEARN MORE