AI Deepfake Mimics Kerala Man’s Workmate in WhatsApp Scam

Deepfake technology, a form of artificial intelligence, was used to mimic a Kerala man's workmate in a WhatsApp scam

Scammers utilize WhatsApp, one of the most widely used messaging apps worldwide, to commit fraud by imitating a user's voice using AI Deepfake technology. A recent case involved an Indian man from Kerala who realized he had fallen victim to a scam involving a call from someone posing as his coworker. The victim, who works at a private hospital in Kerala, thought it was his coworker's phone call when he got it. He was told by the caller that he was in a hospital in another city and required financial assistance. The victim consented to transfer the required sum to the specified account.

Only after the victim contacted his coworker personally he realizes he had been duped. He had never received a call from his coworker, which wasn't even from his phone. Investigations found that the con artists imitated the coworker's voice using AI deepfake technology. The program used speech recordings of the coworker as input to create fresh, synthetic sounds that mimicked the coworker's voice. The call to the victim was then placed by the con artists using this false voice. 

Artificial intelligence deepfake technology has been employed in fraud before. This technology has been exploited by cybercriminals to produce phony films and audio that are then used to trick unwary individuals. Concerns regarding the security of personal information on messaging services like WhatsApp have been raised in light of the incident. The program has drawn criticism for how easily fraudsters and scammers may exploit it to their advantage.

However, WhatsApp has added several security features to guard against fraud on its network. Two-step verification is one of these features; to access their account, users must first input a six-digit code. This function is especially helpful in preventing SIM card swaps, which are frequently employed by con artists to gain access to a victim's WhatsApp account.

End-to-end encryption is another characteristic that guarantees that only the sender and recipient of a message may view its content. This function helps prevent outside eavesdropping. While using WhatsApp and other messaging apps, users are advised to exercise caution and vigilance despite these features. Users should exercise caution when disclosing sensitive data, such as account or banking information, and confirm that the person they are speaking to is who they say they are.