Deepfake video call scams: why seeing a face no longer proves anything
In this article
In short: for years, the advice was “ask for a video call”. It is no longer enough. Some scam networks hire people to make video calls using software that swaps their face live, right when the victim asks to check that it is real. Seeing a face proves neither who the person is nor whether the investment exists. What you need to check is something else.
How it works
According to Malwarebytes, summarising a WIRED investigation, scam compounds in South-East Asia post job ads for “AI models”. They are not programs: they are real people.
- The chat operators talk to you for days or weeks.
- You ask for a video call to make sure. It is what you have always been advised to do.
- The “model” comes on, with a swapped face, and confirms the story. They are the one who closes the sale.
The ads mention about 100 video calls a day per person. Some people also sell the software: in 2024, Frank on Fraud described the case of Haotian AI, which advertised on Telegram with packages of up to about 10,000 dollars, in channels that, according to that author, target these networks.
Not only in romance scams
It has been described mainly in romance scams with investment, but the same technique can be used to pose as a fund manager, a public official or an executive. The FBI has warned about AI video being used in live calls to impersonate executives and officials.
It is different from the celebrity videos in ads. Those are recorded and can be analysed at leisure. We explain it in how to spot a deepfake in an ad. In a call you don’t have that time.
Do tricks like passing a hand across the face work?
They help, but don’t rely on them alone. The usual advice is to ask the person to turn to the side, touch their face or pass a hand in front of it. Some sellers boast that their software already passes those tests. We have not been able to check it, but the conclusion is the same: if the test goes well, that doesn’t prove anything either.
What to check instead of the face
The question is not “is this person real?” but “is this investment real?”. None of this depends on how good the software is:
- Is it authorised? Look the company up in the regulator’s register, going to the official website yourself.
- Who contacted whom? An unknown person who talks to you about investing is a warning sign, whatever face they show.
- Where does the money go? If they ask you to pay into a personal account or to buy cryptocurrency, stop.
- Hang up and call back yourself. If they say they are from a bank or an agency, look up the official phone number and call from another number.
- Tell someone. Whoever is scamming you will ask you not to. That is why you should.
If you have already paid
Stop paying, tell your bank and follow the victim guide. Keep the messages and the profile: it is the first thing they will ask for when you report it.
Where this comes from
We have not seen it first-hand: our contributors do not accept calls from these networks. This article is based on the sources linked. Part of what has been published about these programs comes from their own advertising, and we have not been able to measure how many victims receive these calls in Europe or Latin America.