Finance Worker Victimized by a Deepfake Chief Financial Officer, Pays $25 Million Through 15 Bank Transfers

By Moon Harper

Feb 05, 2024 04:55 AM EST

A finance worker at a multinational firm in Hong Kong was deceived by fraudsters using deepfake technology into paying out $25 million, according to Hong Kong police.

During a briefing on Friday, the employee was fooled into joining a video call with what he believed were fellow staff members. However, all of them were deepfake recreations, as revealed by senior superintendent Baron Chan Shun-ching through the city's public broadcaster RTHK.

Joining a Video Conference Call with Deepfake Recreations

Chan mentioned that the employee became suspicious when he received a message claiming to be from the company's UK-based chief financial officer. Initially, the worker thought it might be a phishing email, especially since it mentioned the necessity of a confidential transaction to be carried out. Despite initially harboring doubts, the employee dismissed his concerns after the video call because the other attendees appeared and sounded exactly like colleagues he knew, Chan said.

The imposter CFO urgently requested money transfers. Thinking that everyone on the call was genuine, the victim followed instructions during the call, ultimately making 15 transfers into five local bank accounts, amounting to a total of $200 million Hong Kong dollars, approximately $25.6 million, as explained by the police office.

Conspiring the Fraudulent Scheme

The AI-generated videos were made using past real online conferences. The culprits used WhatsApp, email, and one-on-one video conferences with Hong Kong staff to make the scam more convincing. According to the city's police senior superintendent, the fraudster downloaded videos in advance and then used artificial intelligence to add fake voices for the video conference.

There is disagreement about what exactly transpired during the crucial call. Some reports indicate that only one participant was real, while others suggest that there were multiple human participants. Everyone agrees that AI-generated humans were present, and unfortunately, the unnamed finance professional was deceived.

The Confirmation with The Headquarters

The fraudulent scheme with the fake CFO was only uncovered when the employee later verified the information with the company's headquarters. The Hong Kong police did not disclose the company or employee's name or specifics.

Rising Cases of Fraudsters Using Deepfake Technology for Financial Gains

This incident is one of several recent cases where fraudsters are suspected of using deepfake technology to manipulate publicly accessible video and other content, deceiving individuals for financial gain.

Hong Kong police announced six arrests related to these scams during the Friday press briefing. Chan mentioned that eight stolen Hong Kong identity cards, reported as lost by their owners, were utilized for 90 loan applications and 54 bank account registrations from July to September last year.

Police reported that AI deepfakes were employed on at least 20 occasions to deceive facial recognition programs by mimicking the individuals depicted on the stolen identity cards.

Global authorities are becoming more worried about the advanced capabilities of deepfake technology and its potential for malicious purposes. In late January, pornographic, AI-generated images featuring American pop star Taylor Swift circulated on social media, highlighting the harmful potential of artificial intelligence technology. The images, depicting the singer in suggestive and explicit poses, were seen millions of times before being taken down from social media platforms.