A finance worker at a multinational company was tricked into transferring $25.6 million to fraudsters, in what is likely the highest-profile scam involving AI deep fake technology to date. The swindlers used AI to mimic the appearance and voice of the worker’s superior colleagues, including the CFO, during a video conference call.
The first to report this event was CNN, and it was then shared by senior superintendent Baron Chan Shun-ching of the Hong Kong police cyber security division. AI deep fake tech has been utilized for multiple scams, including those targeting public and political figures, such as Elon Musk, Mr Beast, and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. Research suggests that about 25% of people are deceived by AI-generated voices and it’s getting increasingly difficult for humans to differentiate real faces from high-quality fakes.
In one incident, social media influencer Eddie Cumberbatch’s grandparents received a fraudulent call from a deep fake voice claiming to be Eddie, saying he’d been in a car crash and needed money urgently. While many of these scams have succeeded, none has been as financially impactful as this most recent event.
Superintendent Chan detailed how the scam was orchestrated; the worker was invited to a video call with numerous participants, all of whom appeared authentic, thereby convincing him to carry out 15 transactions totaling HK$200 million to five local bank accounts. The revelation that participants were deep fakes wasn’t discovered until after the transfers were made.
The scam started with a covert message claiming to be from the company’s UK-based CFO, inviting the employee to a video call to discuss a secret financial transaction. Any initial suspicions were eventually dispelled by the convincing deep fakes.
On discovering the fraud, Chan stressed the importance of public awareness of such deceptive methods, stating that scammers are now using AI tech in online meetings. He urged caution, especially in large group settings.
Last year, Steve Grobman, McAfee’s CTO, warned of this type of scam, saying that AI advancements brought these technologies within reach of more people, including cybercriminals, who can now use generative AI for creating fake voices and deepfakes more easily.
To prevent being duped in such scams, the Hong Kong police suggests verifying suspicious meeting invitations through standard company communication channels and double-checking the authenticity of participants. They also recommend establishing code words with colleagues, friends, and family to confirm identity when doubts arise.
