India is witnessing a surge in AI-powered scams that are becoming increasingly sophisticated and difficult to detect, leaving citizens vulnerable to significant financial losses. Scammers are leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance traditional fraud methods, making them more believable and harder to identify. This includes voice cloning, deepfakes, and manipulation of OTPs (One-Time Passwords), which are used to deceive individuals and businesses alike.
One of the most alarming trends is the use of AI to clone voices. With just a few seconds of audio input, scammers can replicate an individual's voice and use it to impersonate them, convincing victims to transfer money or share sensitive information. For example, a 72-year-old homemaker in Hyderabad lost Rs 1.97 lakh after receiving a WhatsApp message purportedly from her sister-in-law, urgently requesting money. When she called the number to confirm, the voice on the other end sounded familiar and replied "Yes," leading her to believe the request was genuine. Investigators later confirmed that AI-generated voice cloning was used to mimic her relative. Similarly, in Delhi, cybercriminals used voice cloning to swindle 50,000 rupees from a senior citizen by claiming his cousin's son had been kidnapped and playing a voice recording of the child begging for help.
Deepfake technology, which uses AI to create synthetic media, is another tool being exploited by scammers. Deepfakes can manipulate audio and video to create realistic but fake representations of people. In India, scammers have used deepfakes to impersonate CEOs in video conferences, potentially disrupting industries reliant on visual or auditory verification. A particularly concerning case involved scammers in Hong Kong who used a deepfake video to impersonate a company's CFO, resulting in a financial loss of over $25 million. The accessibility of deepfake technology is increasing, allowing even those with minimal technical skills to create convincing fake videos.
OTP fraud remains a significant threat, with scammers using AI-powered tools to trick users into revealing their OTPs through various methods such as call-merging, phishing, and SIM swaps. A new form of digital fraud involves fake eSIM activation, where scammers persuade victims to click on a fraudulent eSIM activation link, allowing them to transfer the victim's number to their device and intercept OTPs. In one reported case, nearly ₹4 lakh was siphoned from an unsuspecting individual through this method.
Email scams are also becoming more sophisticated with the use of AI. AI-powered spear phishing creates highly personalized emails, often reinforced with deepfake video calls, to trick victims into divulging confidential information. Furthermore, "digital arrest" scams involve criminals impersonating police or other authorities, using AI voices and fake video backdrops to intimidate victims into transferring funds.
The consequences of these AI-powered scams are far-reaching. A recent report indicated that a whopping Rs 22,812 crore ($2.78 billion) was lost to digital frauds in 2024 alone, much of it triggered by AI frauds. India registered a record 1.91 million cybercrime complaints in 2024, a nearly ten-fold increase since 2019.
To combat the rising threat of AI-powered scams, experts recommend several safety precautions. These include never sharing OTPs or login details, verifying identities through official channels or video calls, and being cautious of offers that seem too good to be true. It is also advised to limit personal information shared online and enable two-factor authentication. If you suspect you have been a victim of cybercrime, report it immediately on cybercrime.gov.in or call 1930.
The Indian government is also taking steps to address the issue. The Ministry of Home Affairs is using AI and related tools to help investigators combat cybercrime, especially against women and children. IndiaAI is collaborating with the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) to launch the CyberGuard AI Hackathon, which aims to foster AI innovation in cybersecurity. Google has also implemented AI-powered measures to detect and block scam-related pages and messages.
