A Texas man claims he was duped out of $20,000 after criminals used artificial intelligence as part of a sophisticated wiring scam.
Gary Cunningham, a Houston-based real estate developer, said the scammers cloned his voice using AI technology, according to KRIV-TV.
The scammers then called up his accountant, posing as him and instructing her to divert a regularly scheduled, monthly wire transfer from one of his accounts to a new bank.
The scammers reportedly followed up the phone call with a series of phony emails sent from Cunningham to the accountant with further wire instructions.
But when the money didn't arrive in Cunningham's usual account around the same time he normally expects it every month, he called his accountant, who informed him she sent the money to a different bank at what she believed was his request.
"She said it had the same inflections, 'I knew it was you. I was talking to you,'" Cunningham recalled of the November conversation with his accountant, the station reported Tuesday.
Collaborative efforts among Cunningham's bank, IT team and lawyer reportedly proved he was impersonated by scammers who cloned his voice using AI. The scammers also hacked into his email.
"I felt that I'd been taken advantage of, I felt violated. My accountant felt violated," said Cunningham, who added that he cares more about warning people of the dangers of AI than recovering the $20,000.
"I think that's my job now – to relay this more than it is to get my money," he said.
An AI expert said cases like Cunningham's are becoming more prevalent.
"Criminals are using AI every day, and they're getting more sophisticated with it," Dr. Patrick Dicks told the outlet.
"Someone can stand next to you, record your voice, and you have no knowledge of it," he explained. "They can take that little bit of voice data you put in – they take it and run with it. It'll sound like you or someone else."
Police in West University Place, Texas, confirmed Cunningham's case is being investigated as fraud, KRIV reported.
