Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody concluded her “Summer Scams Series: Tech Traps” with a warning about scams that use ChatGPT to appear more believable.
With more than 1.8 billion site visitors each month, ChatGPT is a widely-used artificial intelligence service that generates text after a user enters a prompt. Scammers are now exploiting AI models to make scams more sophisticated.
“Scammers are using artificial intelligence to make solicitations more believable, and Floridians need to be on high alert to avoid falling prey. Scammers can use AI to craft persuasive messages that include precise industry jargon and links to malware. Please take extreme caution before responding to any written solicitation, pop-up messages or an offer that seems too good to be true,” Moody said.
AI can be used to create imposter social media profiles for romance scams, mimic banking websites to steal financial information or even to create fake chats with customer service professionals to obtain personal information. The technology allows the scammer to match the tone, tenor or messaging of a specific company, government entity or nonprofit.
Remember that ChatGPT is simply a tool that scammers use to make messages seem more authentic. It is important to be skeptical:
Always double-check the identity of the person or organization sending the solicitation;
Avoid clicking on links or downloading attachments from unknown sources;
Be skeptical of unsolicited requests for personal, financial or sensitive information; and
Trust instincts—if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Victims of cybercrimes should report incidents to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Computer Crime Center.
Anyone who encounters a cybercrime can also file a complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center at IC3.gov or contact local law enforcement.
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