A financial company employee in Hong Kong recently transferred 23.7 million euros to what he believed was his company's subsidiary in the United Kingdom. The scammers used deepfake technology to impersonate the CFO and other colleagues in a videoconference, according to the Hong Kong police. "In the videoconference with multiple people, it turns out they were all fake," explained Chief Superintendent Baron Chan Shun-ching in statements to the city's public broadcaster, RTHK, which were echoed by CNN. The Hong Kong police have not disclosed the name of the defrauded company or the involved employee. However, they confirmed in a press conference held last Friday that six arrests have already been made in connection with the case.
According to Superintendent Chan, the incident began when the employee received a message supposedly from the CFO of the UK company. The message requested a secret monetary transfer, initially making the employee suspect it was an email scam aimed at obtaining confidential company data.
However, those suspicions dissipated after the video call. As Superintendent Chan explained, the employee saw and spoke with the supposed general manager of the UK company, as well as other employees in the call. The deceived employee, said Chan, recognized the appearance and voice of his colleagues in the videoconference, which led him to lower his guard and make a transfer worth 200 million Hong Kong dollars (23.7 million euros) as requested.
A Growing Phenomenon
This case adds to others of a similar nature that are beginning to emerge and will become more frequent with the ease of use and rapid advancement of new generative artificial intelligence technologies. As discussed in the episode "Control Z: The End of Reality," images created with these technologies are now indistinguishable from reality and can have a devastating impact in the coming decade if preventive measures are not taken.
Deepfake technology, which allows for the creation of fake but convincing videos, poses new challenges in cybersecurity. Companies and individuals need to be more vigilant than ever and always verify the authenticity of communications, especially when it comes to large money transfers.