OSAKA - Police are warning of a nationwide surge in scams involving criminals posing as officers, with evidence emerging that generative AI may now be used to create fake identities during video calls and make the deception more convincing.
Osaka Prefectural Police released part of an actual video call used in a fake police scam in August, but investigators now believe the supposed officer shown on screen may have been an entirely different person whose appearance was generated or altered using AI.
One woman in her 30s living in the Kansai region described how she was targeted by such a scam in June.
The call began with a man identifying himself as Sato from the community safety division of Aichi Prefectural Police. "My name is Sato from the community safety division. When I say this concerns a case, does anything come to mind?" he asked. The woman replied, "No, nothing at all."
The caller then told her that a cash card in her name was connected to a criminal case and that she was suspected of involvement with a fraud group.
The woman said the conversation began abruptly with the claim that her bank account might have been used in a crime. "He kept talking without stopping, giving specific allegations and other details," she said. "He created an atmosphere where I felt I couldn't argue back."
The call was later switched to video, where another man appeared claiming to be a police officer responsible for the fraud investigation.
After showing what appeared to be a police identification card to the camera, the man began questioning the woman in an intimidating manner.
"At this point, isn't there something you're hiding from us, something you need to tell us honestly?" said the man, who identified himself as Inoue. "You cannot disclose investigative information to anyone, whether family, friends, people at work or neighbors. If a third party learns the information, we may also have to question that person."
When the woman asked whether that included a lawyer, the caller replied, "This is not something where you should be communicating directly with a lawyer."
The exchange continued for more than an hour. The woman eventually became suspicious because the callers repeatedly tried to obtain personal information and ended the call before losing any money.
"The person never stumbled over his words," she said. "I think they must have had a proper script prepared. When it's a one-on-one conversation, you become absorbed in it, and I felt like I was being drawn into what the other person was saying."
Fake police scams increasingly use video calls to show victims a person dressed or presented as an officer, strengthening the illusion that they are dealing with genuine law enforcement before scammers attempt to obtain money or personal information.
The latest concern is that the apparent officer appearing during such calls may not even be the person actually speaking. Generative AI technology can replace the scammer's face with another person's face in real time, potentially allowing criminals to assume an entirely fabricated identity.
The video was examined with the supervision of cybersecurity company Trend Micro to demonstrate how such technology can work.
In a demonstration, the person appearing on screen seemed to be a television announcer, but when the camera view was widened, an entirely different man was actually speaking. Generative AI had been used to replace the man's face with the announcer's.
The artificial face moved in the same direction as the speaker's head and reproduced blinking and mouth movements in real time.
Trend Micro's Takeshi Sato said similar technology could be used in fake police scams. "AI technology is advancing rapidly," he said. "Many people still trust what they see through a camera, but they first need to understand that the image shown on a screen can now be changed very easily."
Police say fake police scams are no longer targeting only elderly people. Victims increasingly include younger generations who are comfortable communicating through video calls, prompting authorities to warn people not to assume that someone appearing on camera is who they claim to be.
Source: FNN
