Artificial Intelligence and the issues of identity theft in today's technological age

While identity theft is far from a new concept, perpetrators who steal and impersonate another person's identity now have an expanded arsenal of tools at their disposal. Hence the creation and use of Deepfakes for deep and dark secrets.

- DR. S. KRISHNAN AND MR. ANUJ KUMAR SHAH

Just as businesses have enhanced operations with the expansion of the internet and the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI), identity theft attackers have leveraged AI in diversifying and advancing their efforts.

While most instances of deepfakes involve a degree of humor due to their unbelievability, hackers have used AI-based technology to create and use deepfakes for malicious purposes. By using AI to manipulate a person's voice and appearance to fit their intentions, deepfakes provide a way for hackers to increase the plausible nature of their requests.

The first notable case of an AI-generated deepfake used in a large-scale identity theft occurred in March 2019. According to the Wall Street Journal, the attack's perpetrator created an audio clip impersonating a German company's CEO requesting a wire transfer to an offshore account. The attacker then called a UK employee and played the recording, persuading that employee to comply with the request and send $243,000 to the perpetrator's account.

DEEPFAKE AND AI-ASSISTED FRAUD TACTICS

With the rise of deepfakes and generative AI, fraudsters can create synthetic biometric data, including facial features, to deceive biometric systems. This can enable unauthorized access to devices, secure areas or sensitive information, compromising the integrity of biometric-based identity verification.