Deepfake and voice-clone fraud: what officials say to check

A hypothetical scenario

This scenario is invented for illustration. It is not a reported case.

On a weekday afternoon your phone rings. The voice sounds exactly like your nephew. He says he is in trouble and needs money right away, preferably in cryptocurrency. An hour later a voice message arrives from someone who says they work at your bank and asks you to "confirm" your account details. That evening a video ad shows a well-known figure promoting an investment platform.

Each of these could be real. Each could also be AI-generated. This guide covers what official US and UK sources say about such schemes and which checks their consumer guidance recommends before you act.

What official sources describe

Several government documents published between 2023 and 2026 describe how criminals use AI-generated audio, video and images in financial fraud.

Cloned voices of relatives. An FTC consumer alert from March 20, 2023 says a scammer can clone a loved one's voice from a short audio clip, which could come from content posted online. The FBI's public service announcement (PSA) of December 3, 2024 describes criminals generating short audio clips with a loved one's voice to impersonate a close relative in a crisis.
Access to bank accounts. The same 2024 FBI PSA says criminals obtain access to bank accounts using AI-generated audio clips of individuals.
Fake executives and authority figures on video. The 2024 FBI PSA describes AI-generated video for real-time video chats with alleged company executives, law enforcement or other authority figures. An FBI PSA of September 17, 2026, which updates a 2022 alert, says scammers use AI to appear as law enforcement and government officials on video calls.
Workplace requests. An FTC alert dated April 8, 2024 opens with a call that may sound like your boss asking for bank account numbers, or a family member asking for help.
Fake investment promotions. The 2024 FBI PSA mentions AI-generated videos used as fictitious or misleading promotional material for investment fraud schemes.
Messages from "officials." An FBI PSA of December 19, 2025 describes text messages and AI-generated voice messages that claim to come from senior US officials.
Fake identity documents. A FinCEN alert of November 13, 2024 describes identity documents made with generative AI to get around identity verification, and schemes in which someone impersonates an executive or other trusted employee to instruct transfers of large sums to accounts the scammer controls.

In the UK, Jessica Rusu, the FCA's Chief Data, Information and Intelligence Officer, said in a speech delivered on October 5, 2023 that audio deepfake technology, vishing scam calls and biometric theft pose real risks to consumers, and that deepfakes on social media can harm consumers or be used to manipulate markets. The FCA notes that the drafted text of a speech may differ from what was delivered.

Who each document is written for

These documents are not interchangeable. Knowing who each one addresses helps you decide how to use it.

Consumer guidance (FBI IC3 and FTC). The FBI PSAs, published through the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), and the FTC consumer alerts are written for the public. This is where the practical verification steps come from.
Institution-facing alert (FinCEN). The FinCEN alert is addressed to financial institutions, not consumers. Its red flags, such as a customer declining multifactor authentication or using a third-party webcam plugin during a live verification check, are signals for a bank's own controls. It also tells institutions to use the key term FIN-2024-DEEPFAKEFRAUD in suspicious activity reports. It helps explain what banks look for, but it is not a checklist for individuals.
Regulator's speech (FCA). The FCA speech was delivered at the City and Financial Global AI Regulation Summit 2023, an industry event. It describes risks but gives no verification steps for consumers.

Verification steps by official source

Source	Date	Jurisdiction	Audience	Verification steps recommended
FTC consumer alert (family emergency schemes)	March 20, 2023	US	Consumers	Don't trust the voice; call the person on a number you know is theirs; if you can't reach them, contact another family member or friends; treat requests to wire money, send cryptocurrency or buy gift cards as possible scam signs
FCA speech, Jessica Rusu	October 5, 2023	UK	Industry event	None
FTC consumer alert (voice cloning)	April 8, 2024	US	Consumers	Call the person back on a number you know is theirs
FinCEN Alert FIN-2024-Alert004	November 13, 2024	US	Financial institutions	Red flags and practices for institutions (e.g., multifactor authentication, live verification checks)
FBI IC3 PSA I-120324-PSA	December 3, 2024	US	Public	Create a family secret word or phrase; look for subtle imperfections in images and videos; hang up, research the bank's or organization's contact details yourself and call directly; don't send money, gift cards, cryptocurrency or other assets to people you have met only online or over the phone
FBI IC3 PSA I-121925-PSA	December 19, 2025	US	Public	Independently find a phone number and call to verify; independently confirm contact information before sending money or cryptocurrency, even to someone you know; verify a new number through a previously confirmed platform; create a family secret word or phrase
FBI IC3 PSA I-091726-PSA	September 17, 2026	US	Public	Use official, publicly available contact information; don't use contact details supplied by the person contacting you

A short verification routine

These are the main steps official consumer guidance recommends, put in one sequence. No source cited here measures how well they work, so treat them as a sensible habit, not a guarantee.

Don't use the contact details you were given. The FBI advises using official, publicly available information to contact an agency, not the number or link supplied by the person contacting you.
Hang up and call back independently. For a bank or other organization, the FBI suggests researching its contact details yourself and calling that number directly.
For relatives, call a number you know is theirs. The FTC gives this advice in both alerts and, if you can't reach the person, suggests contacting another family member or friends. For anyone else, including a colleague or a "boss," the FBI's 2025 PSA says to independently find a phone number for the person and call to verify. If someone says they have a new number, the FBI suggests verifying it through a platform you have already confirmed.
Agree on a secret word or phrase with family. The FBI recommends this in both its 2024 and 2025 PSAs.
Treat the payment method as a signal. According to the FBI, law enforcement and government officials will never request payment via prepaid cards, cryptocurrency or courier. The FTC says requests to wire money, send cryptocurrency or buy gift cards can be signs of a scam, and that money sent this way is hard to get back.
Look for flaws, but don't depend on them. The FBI lists spotting imperfections in images, video or audio as a tip, but it should not be your only check (see below).

For people helping older relatives: a family secret word or phrase (step 4) has to be agreed before any urgent call, so set it up in advance. FinCEN notes that scammers running family emergency schemes are known to target older people.

For small-business staff who approve payments: official sources do address workplace impersonation. The FBI mentions video chats with alleged company executives, the FTC describes a call that sounds like your boss asking for bank account numbers, and FinCEN describes impersonation of an executive or trusted employee to instruct transfers. Our reading, not official guidance, is that the consumer steps above, especially calling back on a number you found yourself, also apply to these requests. They are not, however, a corporate payment-control procedure, and none of the cited sources provides one for businesses.

Limits and caveats

Fakes can be hard to spot. Official FBI guidance lists visual and audio imperfections to look for, but it also warns that AI-generated content can be difficult to identify. The 2024 PSA says so in its opening, and the 2025 PSA states that "AI-generated content has advanced to the point that it is often difficult to identify" while still listing imperfections. Taken together, our reading is that the dependable step is verification through an independent channel, not trying to detect a fake.
Detection tools in the FTC alert are proposals. The April 8, 2024 FTC alert announced four winning Voice Cloning Challenge submissions: synthetic-voice detection, real-time liveness scoring, inaudible watermarking to disrupt cloning, and authenticating a human voice as a watermark. These are competition proposals, not tools a reader can rely on today.
No measured effectiveness. None of the cited sources measures how well these consumer steps prevent losses.
Mostly US sources. Most of the guidance here comes from US agencies. The UK source is a speech, not consumer guidance.
Educational only. This article does not assess any specific platform, investment or message, and it cannot guarantee safety or the recovery of funds.

Where to report

In the US: the FBI's September 17, 2026 PSA tells victims to stop all contact with the scammer, notify their financial institutions, contact local law enforcement and file a complaint with IC3 at ic3.gov. The FTC takes reports at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

Elsewhere: these channels are US-specific. If you live in another country, check which national authorities handle fraud reports there.

Sources

All sources retrieved November 2, 2026.

FTC Consumer Alert, "Scammers use AI to enhance their family emergency schemes," March 20, 2023. https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2023/03/scammers-use-ai-enhance-their-family-emergency-schemes
UK FCA, speech by Jessica Rusu, "AI: Flipping the coin in financial services," delivered October 5, 2023. https://www.fca.org.uk/news/speeches/ai-flipping-coin-financial-services
FTC Consumer Alert, "Fighting back against harmful voice cloning," April 8, 2024. https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2024/04/fighting-back-against-harmful-voice-cloning
FinCEN Alert FIN-2024-Alert004, "Fraud Schemes Involving Deepfake Media Targeting Financial Institutions," November 13, 2024. https://www.fincen.gov/system/files/shared/FinCEN-Alert-DeepFakes-Alert508FINAL.pdf
FBI IC3 PSA I-120324-PSA, "Criminals Use Generative Artificial Intelligence to Facilitate Financial Fraud," December 3, 2024. https://www.ic3.gov/PSA/2024/PSA241203
FBI IC3 PSA I-121925-PSA, "Senior U.S. Officials Continue to be Impersonated in Malicious Messaging Campaign," December 19, 2025. https://www.ic3.gov/PSA/2025/PSA251219
FBI IC3 PSA I-091726-PSA, "Scammers Impersonating Law Enforcement and Government Officials in Fraud Schemes," September 17, 2026. https://www.ic3.gov/PSA/2026/PSA260917

Sources & evidence

FBI IC3 PSA I-120324-PSA: Criminals Use Generative Artificial Intelligence to Facilitate Financial Fraud ↗
FBI IC3 PSA I-120324-PSA (December 3, 2024) says it can be difficult to identify when content is AI-generated; describes criminals using AI-generated audio to impersonate relatives in a crisis and to obtain access to bank accounts, AI-generated video for real-time video chats with alleged company executives, law enforcement or other authority figures, and AI-generated promotional videos for investment fraud schemes; and recommends a family secret word or phrase and hanging up to call the bank or organization on an independently researched number.
November 2, 2026
FBI IC3 PSA I-121925-PSA: Senior U.S. Officials Continue to be Impersonated in Malicious Messaging Campaign ↗
FBI IC3 PSA I-121925-PSA (December 19, 2025) still lists visual and audio imperfections to look for, says AI-generated content is often difficult to identify, and advises independently confirming contact information before sending money or cryptocurrency, even when the request seems to come from someone you know.
November 2, 2026
FBI IC3 PSA I-091726-PSA: Scammers Impersonating Law Enforcement and Government Officials in Fraud Schemes ↗
FBI IC3 PSA I-091726-PSA (September 17, 2026) says scammers use artificial intelligence to appear as law enforcement and government officials on video calls; says officials will never request payment via prepaid cards, cryptocurrency or courier; advises using official, publicly available contact information instead of details supplied by the caller; and tells victims to stop all contact, notify their financial institutions, contact local law enforcement and file a complaint with IC3.
November 2, 2026
FinCEN Alert FIN-2024-Alert004 on Fraud Schemes Involving Deepfake Media Targeting Financial Institutions ↗
FinCEN alert FIN-2024-Alert004 (November 13, 2024) is addressed to financial institutions; describes fraudulent identity documents made with GenAI to circumvent identity verification and schemes impersonating an executive or other trusted employee to instruct transfers; lists red flags such as a customer declining multifactor authentication or using a third-party webcam plugin during a live verification check; notes that scammers running family emergency schemes are known to target elder individuals; and asks institutions to use the SAR key term FIN-2024-DEEPFAKEFRAUD.
November 2, 2026
FTC Consumer Alert: Scammers use AI to enhance their family emergency schemes ↗
An FTC consumer alert dated March 20, 2023 says a scammer can clone a loved one's voice from a short audio clip, advises not to trust the voice and to call the person on a phone number you know is theirs, and treats requests to wire money, send cryptocurrency or buy gift cards as possible signs of a scam.
November 2, 2026
FTC Consumer Alert: Fighting back against harmful voice cloning ↗
An FTC consumer alert dated April 8, 2024 notes that a call may sound like your boss asking for bank account numbers or a family member asking for help, announced four winning Voice Cloning Challenge submissions that propose synthetic-voice detection, real-time liveness scoring and audio watermarking, and repeats the advice to call the person back on a phone number you know is theirs.
November 2, 2026
UK FCA speech: AI: Flipping the coin in financial services ↗
In a speech delivered on October 5, 2023 at the City and Financial Global AI Regulation Summit 2023, FCA Chief Data, Information and Intelligence Officer Jessica Rusu said audio deepfake technology, vishing scam calls and biometric theft pose real risks to consumers, and that deepfakes on social media can harm consumers or be used to manipulate markets.
November 2, 2026