Fraudsters using artificial intelligence earn 4.5 times more than average, Interpol reports.

Artificial Intelligence in the Hands of Fraudsters – A New Level of Threats

1. What Has Changed with the Arrival of AI
- Increased Revenue

According to Interpol estimates, fraudsters earn profits 4.5 times higher than when using traditional deception methods.

- Expansion of the Criminal Circle

The new capabilities of AI attract more people to fraud.

2. How Exactly AI Is Applied
Field | What AI Does | Text Messages | Voice Attacks | Data Collection | Financial Transactions
--- | --- | --- | --- | --- | ---
Text Messages | Corrects errors and “tunes” the language for the target audience so as not to expose the fraudster (especially when addressing native speakers of other languages). | | | |
Voice Attacks | With a 10‑second audio clip, AI can mimic the victim’s familiar voice. Complex services for forging appearance and voice are already sold on the black market. | | | |
Data Collection | Automatically aggregates all available information from open sources, creating “arrays” of potential targets. | | | |
Financial Transactions | Cryptocurrencies provide anonymity and make tracking funds difficult. | | | |

3. How This Increases Effectiveness
1. Cost Reduction – less time and resources spent preparing each crime.
2. Increased Number of Victims – automation allows reaching a broader audience with one action.
3. More Precise Attacks – AI selects details that make fraud almost indistinguishable from genuine communication.

4. Development Prospects
- Autonomous Ransom Determination – future AI agents will be able to independently assess the value of stolen data and set a price for its transfer.
- Continuous Vulnerability Monitoring – victim systems will be automatically scanned for weak points.
- Intensification of Extortion Schemes – growth in groups creating compromising videos and photos (intimate material) for blackmail.

5. Scale and Severity of Consequences
Indicator | Value | Financial Losses Last Year | Expected Growth in the Coming Years | Involved Individuals
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
Financial losses last year | $442 billion (Interpol data) | Expected further growth due to widespread AI adoption | Hundreds of thousands worldwide

Besides material damage, victims often lose reputation, social connections, and even life.

6. Conclusion
AI not only increases fraudsters’ profits but also makes their crimes larger in scale, more precise, and harder to curb. Combating these threats requires new approaches to monitoring, legal accountability, and international cooperation.