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FLORIDA - A woman from Hillsborough County fell victim to an AI-powered scam after receiving a phone call that appeared to be from her daughter.
The caller, using a cloned version of the daughter’s voice, claimed to have been involved in a car crash while texting and driving.
The woman, who believed the voice was her daughter’s, was told that her daughter had hit a pregnant woman and had her phone confiscated by the police.
The caller then transferred the conversation to a man, who identified himself as the daughter’s lawyer.
The man told the woman her daughter was being detained and required $15,000 for bail.
He instructed her not to tell the bank the reason for the money withdrawal, warning it could affect her daughter’s credit.
Following these instructions, the woman withdrew the money and gave it to a driver who arrived at her home to collect it.
The next call stated that the unborn child had died in the crash and requested an additional $30,000 to prevent a lawsuit.
The scam was exposed when the woman's grandson contacted the real daughter.
Upon hearing her voice, the woman realized her daughter was unharmed and at work.
The family believes the scammers used videos from social media to create the AI-generated voice.
A report was filed with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, and the case is under investigation.
The sheriff’s office has not yet released details on the suspect’s arrest.