Toronto man loses life savings to Justin Trudeau deepfake cryptocurrency scam
Stephen Henry thought: ‘It’s got to be perfect. If not, how could you get the prime minister?’
A Toronto man says he’s out $12,000 after being duped by a deepfake cryptocurrency scam that used Justin Trudeau’s likeness to endorse a fraudulent investment platform.
The scam was propagated through a YouTube video and manipulated with AI and voice cloning technology to appear as if Trudeau was promoting a cryptocurrency exchange and an investment platform aimed at “helping Canadians safeguard their financial future.”
“I thought, ‘It’s got to be legitimate, it’s got to be perfect. If not, how could you get the prime minister?’ So I thought, ‘It’s got to be official,’” Stephen Henry told CTV.
Henry initially invested $250, but then continued to invest his savings, believing his investments had grown to over $40,000 in value.
When Henry tried unsuccessfully to withdraw some of his money, he realized he’d been scammed.
“Now, I’m ripped off of all my chances of ever making a life. That was all the money I had,” he said.
Henry is far from alone. Scams that exploit the images of politicians and celebrities to deceive individuals have surged alongside the improvements in quality and accessibility of deepfake technology.
Taylor Swift, Pope Francis and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are just a few examples of individuals whose likeness has been co-opted in deepfake scams and misinformation campaigns.
The scams manipulate AI and voice cloning technologies to create highly convincing yet fraudulent endorsements. AI and machine learning algorithms can superimpose faces and mimic voices, including replicating mannerisms and vocal patterns.
Even ads with low believability can be effective, especially for those who are unfamiliar with the advancements in AI technology.
Facebook users may have recently spotted an ad on the platform featuring a deepfake Justin Trudeau promoting a cryptocurrency scam.
The fake ad uses footage from a CBC interview, but Trudeau speaks with an Australian accent.
See Also:
Emerging Threat: Deepfake Technology Scams
