Your parents can't tell the difference anymore.
Send them one rule. It takes 10 seconds.
Why now
- 3–4 seconds
In McAfee's test, 3–4 seconds of audio gave an estimated 85% voice match.
McAfee, "Beware the Artificial Impostor", 2023 - 48%
People spotted AI faces 48% of the time, no better than a coin flip.
Nightingale & Farid, PNAS, 2022 - $2.4B
Over-60s reported nearly $2.4B lost to fraud in 2024. The FTC estimates the true cost at $10.1B–$81.5B.
FTC report to Congress, Dec 2025
It already happened
- Hong Kong, 2024
A finance worker sent about US$25M after a video call where the 'CFO' and colleagues were all deepfakes.
CNN - Arizona, 2023
A mother heard her 15-year-old daughter sobbing in a fake kidnapping call. The caller demanded $50,000. Her daughter was safe the whole time.
Her US Senate testimony - Canada, 2023
Parents sent C$21,000 after a 'lawyer' put a voice like their son's on the phone.
Washington Post, via the Boston Globe
How the scam goes
- 01
The call
A call or video from "family", a "friend" or an "official". The voice and the face look right.
- 02
The pressure
"It's urgent. Don't tell anyone." Panic leaves no time to check.
- 03
The ask
Send money now, or read out the code that just arrived by text.
- She almost ignores it, then answers.
- Her daughter?
Mom… Mom, I messed up.
- Her daughter?
Mom, these bad men have me. Help me!
- A man
Listen here. I have your daughter. You tell anyone, you call the cops…
- A man
$50,000. Cash. No wire transfer.
- Her daughter was safe the whole time. The voice was fake.Scammers can now clone a voice from a few seconds of audio.
Why it should come from you
Older adults prefer fraud advice one-to-one, from friends and family. And a warning call weeks earlier made people less likely to accept a mock scam.
After you send it
- Next time you talk, agree on a family word. Say it out loud. Never write it down or text it.
- Ask them to save the picture, so it's there when the phone rings.