Momentum Group, a financial services company, issues a warning regarding the rise in fraudulent impersonation scams and the usage of “deepfake” content by scammers.
Deepfakes are AI-generated videos, images, or audio that impersonate real-life people or scenarios, making it difficult for the public to distinguish between real and fake content.
Read: 5 Types of Deepfakes You Should Know About
Earlier this year, a deepfake video of retired businessman and former Momentum board member Laurie Dippenaar was circulated on both WhatsApp and Facebook, asking people to invest. The video included a voice-over that sounded exactly like Mr. Dippenaar and seemed highly convincing until you looked a little closer.
Why would a retired businessman now be touting for business via a social media video? Besides making no sense, the outdated image used just looked off and unnatural. Similar videos of Elon Musk or local billionaire Patrice Motsepe have also been doing the rounds. This past week a similarly fake WhatsApp group supposedly managed by Momentum Group FD Risto Ketola was also trolling for investment cash.
Ravi Govender, Momentum Group Digital and Technology Officer, said, “AI has taken the world by storm, and applications have mostly been beneficial; the ease of doing amazing things with these technologies is, however, a double-edged sword, and scammers are now using this sophisticated technology for fraudulent and widespread activity.
The threats are everywhere, and we urge consumers to educate themselves and to be constantly vigilant to not get caught out. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is, and we urge both current and potential clients to seek advice from a financial advisor before depositing their hard-earned money into these schemes.”
Customers are being advised by the company to exercise extreme caution when they are asked to invest or part with money. Scammers use every trick in the book to entice people.
Look out for red flags.
“We recognize that these are challenging economic times for many, and it is especially sad that it is in this context that the desperation that people feel often leads them to be taken advantage of by these get-rich-quick scams. Don’t be fooled. When in doubt, reach out to a financial advisor, to the company, or to the FSCA, who will all be happy to give you a view on whether this is real or not.
To verify an FSP license number or accredited professional advisor, you can use the search tool on the FSCA’s website or call them.
