Fraud has been around almost as long as Homo sapiens, perhaps even longer. Over the millennia, its format has changed a lot. But it’s always been part of the human condition, and probably always will be.
Recently, however, it feels like opportunities to commit fraud are growing faster than society can keep up. In 2023, U.S. consumers lost over $10 billion to fraud, up 14% from 2022. Investment scams took more than $4.6 billion. Imposter scams cost $2.7 billion. The possible culprit for this quickened pace? Artificial intelligence.
AI Arrives in the Sphere of Fraudsters
Certain modern methods of committing a scam or fraud (i.e., those that involve a computer) have been around for years. To clarify the scam definition, consider phishing and impersonation tactics, for example. These are not new methods of targeting people—what is new is that AI can make these methods highly scalable and very difficult to catch. Generative AI tools can write grammatically accurate and informative fake emails in just a few seconds. They can create voice messages and video footage that capture the essence of real people surprisingly well.
Deloitte predicts that AI-driven fraud losses in the U.S. could reach $40 billion by 2027.
New AI Scams to Look Out For
Advances in AI don’t only change the technical features of a scam. They also change the methods scammers employ to target people and influence their decisions. Some of these methods are sophisticated and surprising. Some are silly, and still relatively obvious to anyone paying attention.
Deepfakes
What are they?
Deepfakes are AI-generated videos or audio clips that convincingly mimic real people’s appearance or voices.
How they’re used:
Cybercriminals have used deepfake technology to impersonate executives in video calls, tricking employees into transferring millions. Certain that won’t happen to you? Consider last year’s incident at Arup, which lost $25 million after a deepfake CFO instructed a staff member to wire funds.
AI-Enhanced Phishing Emails
What are they?
Scammers use AI tools to generate realistic messages that mimic trusted contacts or organizations.
How they’re used:
Scammers use AI to craft personalized phishing emails that are harder to distinguish from legitimate messages. A recent study found that AI-generated phishing emails had a higher success rate in deceiving recipients.
AI-Powered Investment Fraud
What is it?
Scammers exploit the hype around AI to promote fake investment opportunities.
How it’s done:
Agencies (or individuals) create fake platforms proclaiming that their use of AI guarantees higher returns. As noted by the DFPI, generative AI does not have the capacity to make accurate predictions.
How to Protect Yourself and Your Business from Modern Fraud
Becoming a victim of a successful fraud campaign can feel humiliating and frustrating, and can have a significant financial impact on your life. While it’s never the scammed person’s fault for other people’s dishonesty, taking basic precautions can save you, your business, and your team a lot of time and mental sanity.
Individual Protection Suggestions
- Always verify requests for money, credentials, or information. This is especially important if requests are urgent. Confirm through official channels only.
- Be extremely cautious about unsolicited messages. Do not share personal or financial information through email, text, or social media.
- Use strong, unique passwords (or a reputable password manager) and enable two-factor authentication wherever possible.
- Research investment opportunities and be skeptical of offers that seem too good to be true. Verify all investment opportunities through a trusted sources
Tech Against Tech
- Invest in AI-powered detection tools, including but not limited to software that helps identify phishing attempts/scam websites.
- Download a VPN to protect your communications and data when connected to unfamiliar or insecure networks.
- Keep your device software updated with the latest security patches.
Corporate Measures Against Fraud
- Establish company-wide verification protocols for everything from account access to official requests.
- Rethink video call security and create action guidelines to be sure that people on the other end are real (such as blinking or specific gestures).
- Invest in employee training to keep staff up to date on the latest scam tactics.
Staying Ahead of the AI Curve
It’s hard to do. Financial institutions and regulators are doing what they can to fight innovative and rapidly changing AI scam techniques by—you may have guessed it—investing in AI. Australia’s Commonwealth Bank has invested $900 million into its fraud prevention programs, deploying thousands of AI bots and real-time monitoring systems that analyze 86 million events daily. The initiative has led to a 76% reduction in scam losses in the first half of 2025 compared to three years ago.
It’s a great place to start fighting back against new forms of fraud, but the best scam prevention happens at multiple levels. Awareness and critical thinking are just as important as any tool or system, as well as building a culture that stops, pauses, and questions when something looks a little off. Especially on the internet. And especially with AI on the table.
