Scammers now use Artificial Intelligence to fool you and your bank; here’s how to protect yourself

SINGAPORE: If you were lax with cybersecurity in the past, a recent report from The Wall Street Journal about how scammers use artificial intelligence to evade detection may change your mind about your settings and habits.

It would give Singaporeans a world of good to up the ante and protect themselves from cybercriminals.

After all, a report last year showed that Singaporeans are hit the hardest by global scams, with losses of more than US$4,000 (S$5,500) per victim, which is more than a month’s salary for many in the country.

Before AI, scams were, at times, fairly easy to detect, with mistakes in grammar or other obvious tells. Nowadays, however, the story is somewhat different.

The report quotes bank and tech investigators who spend a lot of time keeping track of the most recent developments in scams, saying that scammers can now hold conversations without the person they’re talking to being able to tell that they’ve been discussing with bots.

The WSJ piece says that your voice and identity can even be enabled by cybercriminals to be recreated via ChatGPT and other AI tools. This technology has been used by scammers to copy senior executives who’ve asked that wire transfers be made.

The report adds, “If scammers obtain your email and a commonly used password from a tech company data breach, AI tools can swiftly check if the same credentials unlock your bank, social media or shopping accounts.”

In addition to better grammar and impersonation tactics, some fraudsters no longer use malicious links, a major tool used to victimize Singaporeans last year.

Instead, they’re utilizing AI to falsify personal identification cards, such as driving licenses, to open new bank accounts. The scammers would then use computer-generated faces and graphics to get through processes to verify one’s identity.

The bad news is that it’s getting harder for the authorities to find and stop these illicit activities.

However, some banks are taking the initiative to increase their efforts to fight off scams, including using large-language models to tackle identity fraud, which is what JPMorgan Chase does.

At the same time, the bank is also accelerating the pace with which it educates customers about scams. However, customers must also be proactive in protecting themselves.

One good way to do so is to see red flags when a party tells you to use crypto, cash, gold, wire transfer or even an app for payments and use a credit card instead because it has the most protection.

Another good way to protect oneself is to turn on two-factor authentication.

A third is to take time when something feels rushed or “off”. You can cancel the transaction completely and not be swayed by the sense of urgency scammers create.

Also, when in doubt, get the opinion of someone you trust. /TISG

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