Australians lost millions of dollars to scams promoted in deep fake videos and fake news articles in 2023, a government agency has revealed.
Authorities warned Australians to be cautious of misinformation after the National Anti-Scam Centre revealed that 400 people reported losing over 8 million Australian dollars (5.2 million U.S. dollars) to online trading platform scams in 2023.
Catriona Lowe, deputy chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), said the scams work by using deep fake videos and fake news articles posted on social media to convince users that celebrities and well-known public figures endorse, and are making money using, investment trading platforms.
In one case reported to the government’s Scamwatch service, an Australian man lost 80,000 AUD (52,255 USD) in cryptocurrency after investing it with a platform he saw being promoted by billionaire Elon Musk in a deep fake video.
