GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (KSNB) – Artificial intelligence (AI) brings some benefits to Christmas shopping, but scammers are also finding ways to use it to scam people.
According to Alloy's State of Scams Report, 85% of Americans are concerned that AI is making it harder to recognize scams. The report found that 28% of people are concerned about bank identity theft.
Such impersonations are not uncommon in the Tri-Cities. A deepfake video of Grand Island Mayor Roger Steele recently surfaced claiming Christmas lights were banned. Although the video was fake, it raised concerns about the possibility of other AI-generated content.
Josh Planos of the Better Business Bureau said people should be wary of the dark side of AI during giving season and only shop from trusted sellers.
“Is that business really a business? Do they actually have the infrastructure in place to get that information and product in a timely manner?” Planos said. “What I would really like people to do is, whether the ad is real or not, if it's from a company you've never heard of, it's really important to do a little research on who that company is, what they stand for, and how long they've been around,” Planos said.
Related video: AI deepfake falsely shows Grand Island mayor banning Christmas lights.
At a time when people around the world donate money, AI could be used as a tool to defraud people of money intended for good intentions. Pranos said it's important for people to be very critical of everything they see online and on social media.
“Throughout human history, it has never been more difficult to know whether a communication is authentic and who is actually speaking,” Planos said. “With all the technology available to us, you would think that we would soon be able to tell that the person on the other end of the phone or in the video displayed on a cell phone is not a real person. And the more often it happens, the harder it will become. Guardrails usually follow innovation.”
Pranos said now is the time to talk to your family about protecting yourself from AI.
“Talk about trusting your gut instead of believing everything you see. That's been the hallmark of fraud prevention for over 100 years, and it's still true today,” Planos said. “Why would anyone believe that Kearney Arch was steamrolled? I think the tendency to believe that is concerning, right? But you want to make sure that you double and triple check a lot of things these days,” Planos said.
Planos said people buying from companies they are unfamiliar with should check the Better Business Bureau's website. For those who donate, we encouraged them to check out the reason for their donation through the Give.org website. He also said donating to causes within the community will ensure that funds reach their intended recipients.
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