Artificial intelligence has made it easier than ever for criminals to impersonate trusted people. Using publicly available videos, voice recordings, or social media posts, attackers can generate convincing voice messages or video calls pretending to be your child, spouse, a personal assistant, trusted advisor, family office, or travel concierge.

A common scam involves an urgent request for money after someone has supposedly been arrested, injured, or stranded abroad. Our research found deepfake attacks such as these are becoming increasingly common, with impersonation of trusted contacts among the most frequently reported tactics.