Key Takeaways
- AI is making familiar scams more convincing by helping fraudsters create realistic emails, texts, voices, images, videos, and fake customer service experiences.
- Urgency is one of the biggest warning signs. Be cautious of unexpected requests to send money, share personal information, click a link, or authorize a payment.
- A strong defense is to slow down and verify. Contact people, companies, and financial institutions through trusted phone numbers, websites, or apps before taking action.
According to the FBI's latest Internet Crime Report, reported losses from cybercrime totaled nearly $21 billion, including approximately $893 million in reported losses linked to AI-enabled fraud.1
Scammers are using AI tools to make familiar schemes more convincing. Rather than relying only on technical hacking, many are using targeted social engineering to pressure people into sharing sensitive information, revealing login credentials, or authorizing fraudulent payments.
Here are some common AI-enabled scams to watch for.
Deepfake videos and images.
How it works: Scammers can create fake videos or images of celebrities, public figures, executives, or even people you know. These may appear to show someone endorsing a fake investment opportunity, asking for money, or saying something they never actually said.
Voice cloning scams.
How it works: With only a short audio clip from social media, voicemail, or another online source, scammers may be able to imitate a person’s voice. They may call pretending to be a family member, friend, or colleague in an emergency and pressure you to send money immediately.
AI-powered phishing.
How it works: AI can help scammers write emails and text messages that sound polished, natural, and convincing. These messages may appear to come from a bank, government agency, delivery service, technology provider, or other organization you trust. Their goal is often to get you to click a link, download an attachment, or share information about your accounts.
Fake AI chatbots.
How it works: Some scammers create fake customer service chatbots that appear helpful but are designed to capture login credentials, personal information, or payment details. These may appear on fraudulent websites or through links sent by email, text, or social media.
Tips to Recognize and Avoid AI Scams
AI scams can catch you off guard and pressure you to act fast. The best defense is to pause, verify, and avoid acting on instructions that come through an unexpected message, call, or link.
Pause and verify.
If you receive an urgent request for money, personal information, or account access, stop and take a breath before responding. Contact the person or organization directly using a phone number, website, or app you already know and trust. Do not use the contact information provided in the suspicious message.
Use a family code word.
Create a private word or phrase with family members that can be used to confirm someone’s identity in an emergency. If someone calls claiming to be a loved one in trouble, ask for the code word. This simple step can help protect against voice cloning scams.
Be wary of urgent or unusual payment requests.
Treat immediate payment demands as a red flag, especially if the request involves wire transfers, cryptocurrency, gift cards, or payment apps. Legitimate organizations generally give you time to verify the request and offer standard payment options.
Inspect the sender.
Look closely at email addresses, phone numbers and website URLs. Scammers often use addresses that look almost correct but include small changes, misspellings, extra characters, or unfamiliar domains. If something looks off, don’t engage.
Look closely at media.
AI-generated videos and audio can have telltale signs, such as unnatural facial movements, unusual lighting, delayed lip movement, robotic-sounding speech, or backgrounds that do not look right. If something feels off during a call or video, trust your instincts and verify through another channel.
Don’t click unexpected links.
Avoid clicking links in unexpected emails, texts, or social media messages, even if they look legitimate. Instead, open your browser and type in the company’s website yourself, or use a trusted app or saved phone number.
Secure your accounts.
Turn on two-factor authentication for your important accounts—especially banking, email, and social media. Use strong, unique passwords for each account, and consider using a password manager to help keep them organized.
Working With Janney
Depending on your financial needs and personal preferences, you may opt to engage in a brokerage relationship, an advisory relationship or a combination of both. Each time you open an account, we will make recommendations on which type of relationship is in your best interest based on the information you provide when you complete or update your client profile.
If you engage in a brokerage relationship, you will buy and sell securities on a transaction basis and pay a commission for these services. Our recommendations for the purchase and sale of securities will be based on what is in your best interest and reflect reasonably available alternatives at that time.
If you engage in an advisory relationship, you will pay an asset-based fee, which encompasses, among other things, a defined investment strategy, ongoing monitoring, and performance reporting. Your Financial Advisor will serve in a fiduciary capacity for your advisory relationships.
For more information about Janney, please see Janney’s Relationship Summary (Form CRS) on www.janney.com/crs which details all material facts about the scope and terms of our relationship with you and any potential conflicts of interest.
By establishing a relationship with us, we can build a tailored financial plan and make recommendations about solutions that are aligned with your best interest and unique needs, goals, and preferences.
Contact us today to discuss how we can put a plan in place designed to help you reach your financial goals.
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