Romance scammers are using artificial intelligence to target vulnerable people during the holiday season, when loneliness and emotional vulnerability peak.
“Usually it’s somebody who’s very lonely, looking for connection, looking to build that relationship. And that’s what they’re at their most vulnerable,” said Aaron Robel, a security and fraud expert with WSECU. “And it’s just too easy for the bad guys.”
Scammers now use AI to analyze social media profiles and modify voices and appearances. “So they could even pose as somebody that’s familiar, they can modify their appearance, through AI,” Robel said.
Warning signs include refusing to meet in person or video chat. Recent cases show the scope: one woman interacted with over 60 fake accounts of a famous singer, while a man lost $6,600 after sending gift cards to someone he met on a dating site.
“He pulled out gift cards on them, sent the gift cards back to the person he connected with on the dating site, and it ended up costing him 6600 bucks,” Robel said.
The key warning sign remains pressure to send money. Social media oversharing has expanded the problem.
“Because everybody is pretty open about themselves these days on social media. So now that that attack surface has broadened for the bad guys to be able to find those weaknesses, even across a much larger population than they ever had access to previously,” Robel said.
Experts advise insisting on in-person meetings, being suspicious of money requests, and consulting trusted friends before making financial decisions related to online relationships.
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