Here's What Retirees Must Know About AI Scams

Key Points

• Americans 60 and over lost nearly $5 billion to AI scams in 2024.

• AI allows cybercriminals to personalize their scams, blurring the line between what’s real and what’s not.

• Unsolicited contact, creating a sense of urgency, playing on your emotions, and hyper-personalization are all red flags that you may be getting scammed.

• The $23,760 Social Security bonus most retirees completely overlook ›

What do voice cloning, deepfakes, and phishing have in common? They're all versions of artificial intelligence (AI) scams.

AI scams come in all shapes and sizes. Still, they have one thing in common: They use AI technology to impersonate trusted contacts (even mimicking voices), write convincing texts and emails, and trick older adults into revealing financial information or transferring funds.

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In 2024 alone, the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center reported over 859,500 internet crime complaints. Total losses exceeded $16 billion, with the highest total losses (nearly $5 billion) suffered by those 60 and over.

Unfortunately, retirees deal with scams of all types, including Social Security scams. However, knowledge is power when it comes to cyber scams. Here's what you need to know to protect yourself.

Image source: Getty Images.

AI scams are different

AI scams are more targeted and far more personalized than old-school scams, which tended to be sloppier and perhaps a little easier to recognize. AI gives criminals the tools to impersonate loved ones, create official-looking websites and emails, and lull victims into believing they're legitimate.

Cybercriminals using AI have more options than ever. They can launch a massive fraud campaign that targets many people or zero in on specific individuals using data collected from social media and other online platforms.

If you're a grandparent who's ever included a grandchild's name in a Facebook post, you've given a scammer most of what they need to construct a sophisticated form of fraud. Imagine your grandchild is in college. An experienced cybercriminal would have little trouble creating a shockingly realistic clone of their voice simply by using a small snippet of your grandchild's authentic voice, gathered from an outgoing voicemail message, TikTok video, or other easy-to-access source.

How difficult would it be for you to ignore a middle-of-the-night call from your "grandchild" claiming to be in jail or stuck on the side of the road in another state and begging you to withdraw money from your retirement account to help them out?

AI scams are becoming so sophisticated that it's difficult to tell truth from fiction.

Common AI scams

Besides being able to use a short audio sample to impersonate people -- including authority figures like law enforcement -- cybercriminals have other new scams to use. Here are two of the most common:

Deepfake technology

Deepfake technology uses AI to generate realistic photos, audio clips, and videos that make it appear as though someone said or did something that they didn't. If you're a frequent social media user, you've probably come across a deepfake photo or video, and you may still believe it's legitimate. That's how believable deepfakes can be.

Here are two ways a deepfake can be used to separate you from your money:

1. Account takeover: A cybercriminal can use a deepfake to mimic your appearance, voice, and even your mannerisms. Imagine you've been banking with the same bank or credit union for years and know most of the employees. Deepfakes can be convincing enough to make an employee believe it's you they're speaking with on the phone and grant the cybercriminal access to your account.
2. Interpersonal: If you find yourself in an online relationship, the person on the other end may not be who they claim to be. Thanks to deepfakes, they can create photos and videos to convince you that they're someone else. Once they've gained your confidence, they'll begin making small financial requests and continue to do so until you either catch on to their scheme or run out of money.

Phishing

Using AI, scammers can generate extremely authentic emails that bypass spam filters. The emails look so much like those from reputable companies that finding differences is nearly impossible.

Scammers often create emails that appear to be real notifications regarding your account or urgent requests for information. Using information collected from online sources, cybercriminals personalize the messages to make them appear they've been written specifically for you.

According to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, these tips can help you avoid a phishing scam:

• Avoid deals that seem too good to be true.
• Be skeptical of messages that include urgent language.
• Inspect each message thoroughly. Look for inconsistencies in their email address, such as mismatched domain names.
• Be wary of emails received at unusual hours, like early mornings or weekends.
• Avoid opening links or attachments.
• Beware of scanning QR codes.

Protect yourself

The National Council on Aging (NCOA) says these are some of the red flags to look out for:

• Requests for personal information: Never provide sensitive details, such as your bank account or Social Security number.
• Outdated content: Some AI tools are trained using limited data, causing them to generate outdated text.
• High-pressure pitches: Scammers are famous for creating a sense of urgency, pressuring you to make quick decisions.
• Overly formal language: AI may be all the rage, but it often produces content that doesn't sound natural.
• Odd payment requests: You know there's an issue if you're asked to pay via wire transfer, cryptocurrency, or gift card -- three samples of payment that are typically untraceable.

AI isn't a bad thing. In fact, there are ways you can harness AI to make money. However, your best move is to recognize that there are some bad players out there and do everything within your power to neutralize their ability to do you harm.

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