Hong Kong Police Arrest 27 People for Using Deepfakes in $46 Million Crypto Scam
Date: 2024-10-18 Author: Oliver Abernathy Categories: IN WORLD
Police said the scammers used artificial intelligence technology to impersonate real women and gain the trust of victims by convincing them to participate in fake investment projects. The victims were residents of mainland China, Taiwan, India, and Singapore. According to local media, the scam earned the organizers over $46 million.
The alleged international scheme was based in a 370-square-meter industrial building in Hong Kong’s Hung Hom district. The scammers recruited university graduates specializing in digital media and collaborated with foreign IT professionals to create fake cryptocurrency investment platforms. The gang also developed training materials for new recruits who would use artificial intelligence in their fraud.
On October 9, police launched an operation to seize computers, mobile phones, and luxury items belonging to the gang. Among the items confiscated were more than 100 mobile devices used to carry out the operations. The detainees range in age from 21 to 34, with 21 of them being men.
The detainees have been charged with conspiracy to commit fraud and illegal possession of weapons.
This is not the first time deepfakes have been used to defraud in Hong Kong. In February 2024, scammers managed to defraud an employee of a major financial company out of more than $25 million by posing as executives in an online video conference. According to police spokesman Baron Chan, the scammers used previously recorded footage to create the deepfakes.
Statistics show that crypto scams are on the rise, with the amount of funds stolen exceeding $4.6 billion in 2023. Romance scams, known as “pig slaughter,” have doubled the amount of money scammers made in 2020, according to Chainalysis.
