PS Radhakrishnan, a 72-year-old retired resident of Kozhikode, fell victim to an AI-enabled scam, highlighting the growing concern of cybercrime in India. On July 9, Radhakrishnan received a message from an unknown number, claiming to be a former colleague from his previous workplace, Coal India Limited (CIL). The scammer asked about the well-being of common friends and then made a WhatsApp voice call informing Radhakrishnan about his sister-in-law’s hospitalization in Mumbai. He urgently requested Radhakrishnan to transfer INR 40,000 via UPI for her treatment.
Radhakrishnan, cautious of impersonation scams, expressed his concerns, but the scammer quickly made a video call, convincing Radhakrishnan to transfer the money. However, when the scammer asked for an additional INR 30,000, Radhakrishnan realized something was amiss and hung up. He later discovered he had been scammed and reported the incident to the police.
The police investigation revealed that Radhakrishnan’s money was deposited into an account in Gujarat and then transferred to another account in Mumbai. This modus operandi is indicative of “Jamtara” rackets, where scammers continuously move money before withdrawing it in cash. The Kozhikode police suspect that the scammers infiltrated a WhatsApp group of former colleagues to gather information and impersonate members.
This incident raises concerns about the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in cybercrimes. AI-powered models can generate synthetic voices that are virtually indistinguishable from real ones. Criminals can collect voice samples from social media posts or other public sources and clone them using AI tools. A study commissioned by cybersecurity company McAfee revealed that 53% of adults share their voices online, with India having the highest percentage at 86%.
The incident involving Radhakrishnan serves as a wake-up call for the cybersecurity and law enforcement community in India. It emphasizes the need for better protection against AI-enabled scams and the importance of raising awareness about the vulnerabilities of personal information, including voices, on the internet.
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