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How a father lost $30,000 to AI voice scam; here’s how he was tricked

Jay Shooster, a Florida State House candidate, shared how scammer... Read More
A US resident recently shared how his father almost fell victim to a voice-cloning scam. Jay Shooster, who is running for the Florida State House, revealed that scammers used AI to clone his voice. He also noted that these scammers deceived his parents into believing he had been in a car accident and arrested for DUI and demanded Rs 25 lakh (approximately $30,000) for bail. Shooster believes the scammers obtained a voice sample from a recent TV appearance he made.

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What Shooster said about the AI voice clone scam


In a series of posts on X (earlier Twitter), Shooster explained the entire incident. He wrote: “Today, my dad got a phone call no parent ever wants to get. He heard me tell him I was in a serious car accident, injured, and under arrest for a DUI and I needed $30,000 to be bailed out of jail. But it wasn't me. There was no accident. It was an AI scam.”

Adding to the thread of the X post he explained how scammers got hold of his voice. Shooster said: “I'm not sure it was a coincidence that this happened just days after my voice went up on television. Fifteen seconds of me talking. More than enough to make a decent AI clone.”


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“As a consumer protection lawyer, I've literally given presentations about this exact sort of scam, posted online about it, and I've talked to my family about it, but they still almost fell for it. That's how effective these scams are. Please spread the word to your friends and family,” he said in a third post in the thread.



Side-effects of AI voice cloning tech and how to stay safe


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