Woman loses thousands to scammer using suspected AI to mimic daughter's voice
A San Francisco woman is hoping to raise awareness around artificial intelligence scams after losing thousands to someone claiming they had kidnapped her daughter.
Deborah Del Mastro said she received a phone call earlier this month from an unknown individual who she said claimed they had taken her adult daughter Sarah, demanding money in exchange for her return.
Del Mastro told "Good Morning America" in a segment airing Tuesday that the individual claimed to have proof they had her daughter.
She recalled the individual telling her they had "someone here that you need to talk to" before hearing her daughter's voice over the phone.
"I hear, my daughter's voice -- sobbing, trying to breathe, having a panic attack," Del Mastro recounted. "And [the voice] says, 'I'm so sorry, Mom. I am so scared. I'm so sorry.'"
Del Mastro said her "mouth just dropped."
She said the caller then demanded Del Mastro wire $5,400 to multiple locations in Mexico.
"I was ready to do anything to save my daughter, to protect her ... to get her back," she said.
Del Mastro phoned her daughter after wiring the money, only to learn she was actually safe and at work as usual. It was then Del Mastro said she realized she had been scammed.
AI capabilities now make it simple for scammers to replicate voices using just a snippet of sound from a voice recording.
Erin West, founder of Operation Shamrock, an organization focused on combating the scam industry, explained the technology in an interview with ABC News San Francisco station KGO.
"What they can do with just a few seconds of your voice [is] they can clone it, and they can essentially produce sound that sounds exactly like you," West said, adding that the rising trend of AI voice-cloning scams is "only getting worse, and it will only continue to get worse with the use of AI and deepfake technology."
She encouraged the public to be mindful of any urgent requests demanding money or personal information.
"When we get something that raises our anxiety and requires immediate action, and that immediate action requires the movement of money, we need to know, 'Red flag, this is a scam,'" she added.
Del Mastro told "GMA" she hopes to raise awareness around scams like the one she fell victim to, in order to keep others safe.
"I am a Navy veteran, and I'm usually very good in a crisis ... and I totally, totally believed this guy had my daughter," she said.
According to KGO, police are continuing to investigate the incident.
