Artificial intelligence-enabled voice cloning tools have made it easier for criminals to mimic strangers’ voices and dupe victims into handing over large sums of money.
For example, a scammer might target a victim posing as their grandchild and claiming they require cash — fast. Older people who might not be as familiar with new technologies such as AI can be particularly susceptible to these types of scams, particularly when the caller on the other line sounds identical to a loved one. Phone numbers also can be spoofed to mimic those of callers known to the target of voice cloning scams.
In 2023, senior citizens were conned out of roughly $3.4 billion in a range of financial crimes, according to the FBI data. The agency recently warned that AI has increased the “believability” or criminal scams given that they “assist with content creation and can correct for human errors that might otherwise serve as warning signs of fraud.”
Also commonly known as “grandparent scams,” a fraudster will impersonate an individual’s loved one and claim they are in trouble, or need cash immediately for some sort of emergency.
“So much of it is based on psychology and hacking the limbic system,” Chuck Herrin, field chief information security officer for F5, a security and fraud prevention firm, told CBS MoneyWatch. “They say things that trigger a fear-based emotional response because they know when humans get afraid, we get stupid and don’t exercise the best judgment.”
How to create a family safe word
The good news? Cybersecurity experts and law enforcement officials have a simple, but effective, recommendation for avoiding getting victimized by such scams: creating a family “safe word,” along with a protocol for verifying a family member or loved one’s identity.
That means choosing a word or phrase that can’t be easily guessed. Obvious identifiers like a street name, alma mater or other information that may be readily available online are ill-advised, experts say.
“It needs to be unique and should be something that’s difficult to guess,” Scobey said. “It shouldn’t be something that can be researched online about you or your family. Avoid street names, towns, phone numbers and individual names as part of a pass phrase.”
A safe phrase, consisting of at least four words, offers a greater degree of security, he added.
Verify the caller’s identity
Following a basic routine that includes using a safe word is a good first line of defense against scammers.
“This is a mass operation, they don’t care about you, they just care about bad security. They are churning though thousands of people they found on the dark web,” Herrin of F5 told CBS MoneyWatch. “If you have a reasonable security posture, you’ll probably be fine. But if you leave the window open, you’ll lose your TV,” he said, comparing cybersecurity threats to physical vulnerabilities.
Any time you are asked for financial assistance, require that the caller verify his or her identity. The key: Always ask for the safe word before transferring any money.
“Family safe words can be a really useful tool if they are used properly,” Eva Velasquez, said CEO of the Identity Theft Resource Center, a nonprofit focused on ID security.
Velasquez gave the example of a phony grandchild calling a grandparent and saying something like, “I am in jail and need help, and I am so distraught I can’t remember our password.” In a tense or emotional moment, the victim could be inclined to offer it up to the person in distress, putting themselves in jeopardy.
“I do think they can be a very useful tool, but you have to explain to the family how it works so you don’t volunteer it,” she said. “We have had a couple incidents where the victim will say the safe word first instead of letting the other person say it.”