Chinese scammer uses AI to defraud 'friend' of USD 622,000

A legal advisor at a technology company in Fuzhou, China, was defrauded of RMB 4.3 million (USD 622,000) after receiving a video call from a 'friend' who turned out to be a fraudster using AI face-swapping technology. According to local police, the fraudster stole an individual’s WeChat account and used AI to create a deepfake of the person's face. The fraudster made a video call to a businessman who was an existing contact on the individual’s WeChat app and told the businessman they needed to make a deposit during a bidding process. The businessman subsequently transferred RMB 4.3 million to the fake friend’s bank account without verifying their true identity. The police later intercepted some of the stolen funds, though reports suggested approximately RMB 1 million was yet to be recovered. The scam was reckoned to have been the largest of its kind. Cybercrime Cybercrime encompasses a wide range of criminal activities that are carried out using digital devices and/or networks . These crimes involve the use of technology to commit fraud, identity theft, data breaches, computer viruses, scams, and expanded upon in other malicious acts. Source: Wikipedia 🔗 System 🤖 Unknown Operator: Tencent/WeChat Developer: Country: China Sector: Private Purpose: Defraud Technology: Deepfake - video, audio; Machine learning Issue: Imper sonation; Fraud

Date it happened

2023-04-01

Organisation involved

Tencent/WeChat

This is a record of what was reported, not a finding that anyone broke the law. If it names your organisation and you believe it is wrong, the corrections process is free and open to everyone.