Scammers are targeting older people with AI voice cloning scams.
(Debalina Ghosh via Getty Images)
Criminals are using artificial intelligence (AI) to clone people’s voices and set up unauthorised direct debits over the phone in a new “alarming” type of scam, authorities have warned.
Scam calls are booming in the UK: the National Trading Standards (NTS) has said that UK adults now receive an average of seven scam calls or texts every month, with about one in five (21%) receiving them most days and 9% receiving them every day.
The NTS has now issued a warning over a new type of disturbing scam involving ‘voice cloning’ software.
All criminals need is a few minutes of a person’s voice and they can create a creepily lifelike replica of that person’s real voice, which can then be used to, for example, set up a fake direct debit.
With criminals now cold-calling people in Britain to ‘harvest’ samples of their voice to use in fraud, there are some simple steps most people can take to protect themselves, such as registering to avoid marketing cold-calls.
Yahoo News looks at how big the problem is – and what you can do about it.
How does the voice-cloning scam work?
The scam largely targets older people, and happens over the phone, National Trading Standards (NTS) has warned.
Scammers call, pretending to be marketers, but the survey is fake, and the point of the call is to harvest both information and samples of people’s voices.
Using AI software, it’s possible to generate a highly convincing clone of someone’s voice.
Fraudsters began the process by asking victims to participate in a so-called “lifestyle survey” phone call. The survey is actually designed to gather personal, health and financial details.
The criminals then use this information to create AI-generated voice clones of the person, and then call financial institutions to set up payments.
The voice clones could then be used to set up payments with banks and other legitimate businesses and financial providers without the victim’s knowledge, NTS said.
Armed with this information and a convincing fake voice, criminals can do everything from setting up direct debits to taking out loans.
Victims often did not realise payments were being taken, the NTS warns, saying that the scammers often target “the most vulnerable”.
Louise Baxter, head of the NTS scams team, said: “What we’re seeing is a deeply disturbing combination of old and new: traditional phone scams supported by disturbing new techniques.
“Criminals are using AI not just to deceive victims, but to trick legitimate systems into processing fraudulent payments.
John Herriman, chief executive at the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI), added: “This alarming new twist in phone-based fraud shows just how quickly criminals are exploiting emerging technologies to prey on the public.”
How can you protect yourself?
The simple way to protect yourself is to never answer unexpected calls, particularly where people are keen to get you to complete a survey.
But you can also protect yourself by blocking all incoming marketing calls. That way you can be sure that you anyone still calling is a scammer.
To do so, visit the Telephone Preference Service website and fill in the form (it’s simple and only requires your phone number, address and email address).
It works on British landlines and on mobiles.
You can block all incoming marketing calls using the Telephone Preference Service
(TPS)
Once you are registered – you are sent an email and have to click the link to finalise it – marketers are legally not allowed to call you after 28 days (although the Telephone Preference Service says that in practice, calls tend to stop much sooner).
After that point, anyone who phones with a survey is almost certainly a scammer and it’s safe to hang up.
Which? consumer law spokeswoman Lisa Webb said: “You shouldn’t have to worry about your own voice being used against you in this way but sadly we’ve reached a stage where every phone call must be treated with suspicion. If you get any calls out of the blue, don’t be afraid to hang up, genuine callers won’t mind.
“If you see any direct debits or transactions on your bank account that you don’t recognise, contact your bank immediately using the number on the back of your card. You should also report any scams to Police Scotland or Report Fraud to investigate.