Romance scams are on the rise in WA, with authorities warning people to be vigilant of scammers using artificial intelligence to disguise themselves in video calls.
Authorities are warning people to remain vigilant of scammers using AI to disguise themselves in video calls.After losing her husband and moving across the globe to Perth where her children were but where she knew nobody, Maggie Ayres fell into a deep depression.
Brian claimed to be in charge of an oil rig, and begged Ms Ayres to loan him money to buy replacement parts so he could leave the rig and come see her.Video calls had to be scheduled in advance and Ms Ayres's doubts were growing, but she ultimately transferred tens of thousands of dollars. "I immediately disconnected the call … and I shouted out loud in disbelief: 'Is this reality? Is this guy the scammer? Am I really being scammed?'"Ms Ayres believes her scammer was using deepfake AI technology to disguise his identity on video calls and make the scam more believable.
It brings the total amount lost to romance scams in the state this year to $2.9 million, on track to surpass last year's total of $3.7 million.
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