1. AI ScamsDear Residents With AI growing fast in the Online world Cyber Criminals are continuously finding new ways to scam people by gaining personnel information and money from unsuspecting members of the public. Scammers almost always have the same goal—to get your personal information or money. Learning about the latest developments will hopefully help you stay one step ahead. The latest scams to watch out for in 2025 include AI-powered scams, imposter scams and investment scams. Generative AI tools generally get classified by the type of content they generate, such as text, images or videos. Scammers can use them to enhance different types of popular scams: Phishing and smishing: Scammers can use AI to write more convincing and natural-sounding phishing emails and text messages.AI images: Scammers can use AI-generated images to quickly create eye-catching websites, social media ads, fake identification documents, explicit photos and fake headshots for social media profiles. Deepfake videos: AI-generated videos might be created to promote fake products, services or investments. Scammers also might use deepfake recordings or real-time face- and body-swapping tools to trick victims into thinking they're someone else. Fake and cloned voices: Scammers also use AI-generated or altered voices for their videos and for phone-based scams. Some AI tools can even mimic real accents.The potential to create an image, video or voice of someone can make many existing scams more believable, and it opens up new opportunities for scammers. How To Avoid Scams Be skeptical when someone contacts you. Scammers can spoof calls and emails to make it look like they are coming from different sources, including government agencies, charities, banks and large companies. Don't share personal information, usernames, passwords or one-time codes that others can use to access your accounts or steal your identity.Don't click unknown links. Whether the link arrives in your email, a text or a direct message, never click on it unless you're certain the sender has good intentions. If the message says it's from a company or government agency, call the company using a number that you look up on your own to confirm its legitimacy.Be careful with your phone. Similarly, if you suspect a spam call, don't respond or press a button. The safest option is to hang up or ignore the call entirely. You can look up the organization and initiate a call if you're worried there may be an issue.Update your devices. Software updates may include important security measures that can help protect your phone, tablet or computer.Enable multifactor authentication. Add this feature to any accounts that offer it as an option, and try to use a non-SMS version to protect yourself from SIM swapping.Research companies before taking any actions. Before you make a purchase or donation, take a few minutes to review the company. Do a web search for its name plus "scam" or "reviews" and research charities on Charity Navigator and CharityWatch.Don't refund or forward overpayments. Be careful whenever a company or person asks you to refund or forward part of a payment. Often, the original payment will be fraudulent and taken back later.Look for suspicious payment requirements. Scammers often ask for payments via cash, wire transfer, money order, cryptocurrency or gift cards. These payments can be harder to track and cancel than other forms of payment, which can leave you stuck without recourse.Create a family password. Create a family password that you can all use to verify that it's really one of you on the phone, and not someone who created a deepfaked video or cloned voice. |
