BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – Back-to-school shopping is one of the biggest shopping seasons of the year, second only to the holidays, and this year artificial intelligence is becoming part of the shopping experience.
A new poll found 73% of parents plan to use AI for tasks like researching products, comparing prices, creating a budget or finding deals.
But shoppers aren’t the only ones using AI. Scammers are using it too, creating increasingly convincing fake websites, ads, emails and messages designed to steal money and personal information.
“So they can build these professional-looking shopping sites, write polished-looking phishing emails and create realistic ads that don’t have the spelling mistakes and other obvious warning signs that we used to look for,” said Joan Goodchild, of the Cyber Savvy Mom.
The Cyber Savvy Mom says to be suspicious of unusually deep discounts and go to the retailer’s website to verify it’s legit.
She also warns parents about other school scams, including messages coming from fraudsters about packages, tuition and scholarships, and fake organizations trying to get info on kids.
You can see more with Joan Goodchild Sunday morning at 11:30 a.m. on “You Can Quote Me.”
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