The Dark Side of AI: Voice Generators Used to Scam People Out of Money
The impact of AI technology has been widely discussed in the technology industry, with tech giants such as Microsoft and Google incorporating AI into their products to keep up with the evolving landscape. While AI has shown tremendous potential in a variety of applications, there are also growing concerns about the negative impact of this technology, which is often poorly regulated and monitored.
One such example is the increasing exploitation of AI voice generators for fraudulent activities. The technology can be used to mimic human voices with remarkable accuracy, making it easier for scammers to deceive unsuspecting individuals. With just a few sentences, scammers can replicate the sound and tone of a voice actor convincingly, using this AI-generated voice to lure individuals into parting with their hard-earned money.
The increasing use of AI voice generation software has given rise to concerns about the unethical use of this technology. The technology has evolved to the point where a few seconds of dialogue is all that is required to mimic a person's voice accurately. This has led to numerous reports of voice actors' voices being stolen, raising concerns in the media about the potential impact on the industry.
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However, the more significant concern regarding AI voice generators is their use in fraudulent activities. According to a recent report from The Washington Post, thousands of people have fallen victim to imposters pretending to be their loved ones. Imposter scams have become the second most common type of fraud in America, with over 36,000 reported cases in 2022. The victims are often conned out of their money over the phone, with over 5,000 victims losing $11 million in total, according to FTC officials.
The use of AI voice generators in fraudulent activities can have devastating consequences, as illustrated by a particular story from The Washington Post report. The story involves an elderly couple who were duped out of over $15,000 through a bitcoin terminal after being convinced by an AI-generated voice that their son was in legal trouble for killing a U.S. diplomat in a car accident.
Sadly, this story is not unique, as most of these scams appear to target vulnerable groups such as the elderly. Given the growing prevalence of these fraudulent activities, there are concerns about the legal implications of AI voice generators and other AI technologies.
One challenge in holding companies liable for the misuse of AI technology is the difficulty in tracing the source of the fraudulent activities. In many cases, scammers operate anonymously, making it difficult to identify and hold them accountable for their actions.
These fraudulent activities highlight the need for greater regulation and oversight of AI technology. While AI has the potential to revolutionize the way we live and work, it is essential to consider the potential adverse effects of this technology on society. As policymakers and industry leaders work to address the legal and ethical implications of AI, it is crucial to balance innovation with the need for responsible use and deployment of this technology.
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Uhh, this has already been possible – I am not sure how but remember my brother telling me about it. I’m not a whatsapp user so not sure of the specifics, but something about sending the image as a file and somehow bypassing the default compression settings that are applied to inbound photos.
He has also used this to share movies to whatsapp groups, and files 1Gb+.
Like I said, I never used whatsapp, but I know 100% this isn’t a “brand new feature”, my brother literally showed me him doing it, like… 5 months ago?
Martin, what happened to those: 12 Comments (https://www.ghacks.net/chatgpt-gets-schooled-by-princeton-university/#comments). Is there a specific justifiable reason why they were deleted?
Hmm, it looks like the gHacks website database is faulty, and not populating threads with their relevant cosponsoring posts.
The page on ghacks this is on represents the best of why it has become so worthless, fill of click-bait junk that it’s about to be deleted from my ‘daily reads’.
It’s really like “Press Release as re-written by some d*ck for clicks…poorly.” And the subjects are laughable. Can’t wait for “How to search for files on Windows”.
> The page on ghacks this is on represents the best of why it has become so worthless, fill of click-bait junk…
Sadly, I have to agree.
Only Martin and Ashwin are worth subscribing to.
Especially Emre Çitak and Shaun are the worst ones.
If ghacks.net intended “Clickbait”, it would mark the end of Ghacks Technology News.
Ghacks doesn’t need crappy clickbaits. Clearly separate articles from newer authors (perhaps AIs and external sales person or external advertising man) as just “Advertisements”!
We, the subscribers of Ghacks, urge Martin to make a decision.
because nevermore wants to “monetize” on every aspect of human life…
“Threads” is like the Walmart of Social Media.
How hard can it be to clone a twitter version of that as well? They’re slow.
Yes, why not mention how large the HD files can be?
Why, not mention what version of WhatsApp is needed?
These omissions make the article feel so bare. If not complete.
Sorry posted on the wrong page.
such a long article for such a simple matter. Worthless article ! waste of time
I already do this by attaching them via the ‘Document’ option.
I don’t know what’s going on here at Ghacks but it’s obvious that something is broken, comments are being mixed whatever the article, I am unable to find some of my later posts neither. :S
Quoting the article,
“As users gain popularity, the value of their tokens may increase, allowing investors to reap rewards.”
Besides, beyond the thrill and privacy risks or not, the point is to know how you gain popularity, be it on social sites as everywhere in life. Is it by being authentic, by remaining faithful to ourselves or is it to have this particular skill which is to understand what a majority likes, just like politicians, those who’d deny to the maximum extent compatible with their ideological partnership, in order to grab as many of the voters they can?
I see the very concept of this Friend.tech as unhealthy, propagating what is already an increasing flaw : the quest for fame. I won’t be the only one to count himself out, definitely.
@John G. is right : my comment was posted on [https://www.ghacks.net/2023/08/23/what-is-friend-tech/] and it appears there but as well here at [https://www.ghacks.net/2023/07/08/how-to-follow-everyone-on-threads/]
This has been lasting for several days. Fix it or at least provide some explanations if you don’t mind.
> Google Chrome is following in Safari’s footsteps by introducing a new feature that allows users to move the Chrome address bar to the bottom of the screen, enhancing user accessibility and interaction.
Firefox did this long before Safari.
Basically they’ll do anything except fair royalties.