Report an
AI deepfake scam.
39% of online scam victims in 2023 were targeted using AI deepfake technology. Scammers use AI to create fake video calls, clone voices of family members, generate celebrity endorsements for fake investments, and produce realistic fake explicit images. Warren Buffett called AI scams the "biggest growth industry of all time." Report deepfake fraud here.
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How AI deepfake scams work — the fastest-growing fraud threat
AI-powered deepfake scams represent the fastest-growing threat in online fraud. Social Catfish's 2024 report found that 39% of scam victims were targeted using AI deepfake technology, and the trend is accelerating. Warren Buffett called AI-powered scams the "biggest growth industry of all time," and the data supports his warning — deepfake fraud attempts increased over 3,000% between 2022 and 2024.
The technology has reached a point where a scammer needs only 5 seconds of someone's voice — easily pulled from a social media video — to create a convincing clone. Video deepfakes can now operate in real-time, allowing scammers to conduct live video calls while wearing someone else's face. This has devastated the reliability of video calls as an identity verification method, which was previously the gold standard for detecting romance scams and business fraud.
How deepfakes are used in scams
Celebrity endorsement scams use AI-generated videos of Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, or other public figures promoting fake crypto investments. Voice cloning powers the evolved grandparent scam — a panicked voice that sounds exactly like your grandchild calls asking for bail money. Romance scam deepfakes create realistic video calls, eliminating the old red flag of "they would never video chat." BEC deepfakes impersonate executives on video calls to authorize fraudulent wire transfers — one company lost $25 million in a single deepfake-enabled BEC attack in 2024.
How to detect deepfakes
Look for subtle visual glitches: inconsistent skin tones, unusual shadows, teeth that blur or change shape, earrings that appear and disappear, hair that doesn't move naturally. Ask the person to turn their head to the side or place a hand in front of their face — real-time deepfakes often glitch with occlusion. For voice calls, use your family code word. For investment opportunities, remember: if a celebrity is promoting it through social media ads, it's almost certainly a scam. No legitimate investment needs a deepfake Elon Musk to sell it.
Where else to report
File in multiple places to maximize impact:
- →FBI IC3 — ic3.gov — the FBI is actively building deepfake fraud databases and investigative capabilities
- →FTC — reportfraud.ftc.gov — for consumer protection tracking of AI fraud patterns
- →The platform — report deepfake content on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, etc. for removal
- →Social Catfish — socialcatfish.com — use reverse image search to check if photos/videos are stolen or AI-generated
Related scam types
Scammers often combine tactics. If this looks familiar, check these too: