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If a caller sounds exactly like a relative asking for urgent help, don’t rely on the voice to prove who they are. Hang up or pause, then call the person at a number you already trust. If they don’t answer, check with another family member or friend before sending money or sharing information.

How an AI voice-cloning scam works

A scammer may use a short audio sample and voice-cloning software to imitate someone you know. The sample could come from audio the person has posted online, according to the FTC’s consumer alert. A convincing voice can make a fabricated emergency feel real, but it does not verify the caller’s identity.

In a common family-emergency setup, the caller says a relative is in trouble and needs money immediately. Scammers may create pressure with urgency, appeals to emotion, or demands to keep the situation secret. They may request a wire transfer, cryptocurrency, a payment-app transfer, or gift cards.

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The tactic is not limited to families. The FTC describes scammers cloning an executive’s voice to persuade employees to transfer money or pay a fake invoice. In a May 15, 2025 alert, the FBI described an ongoing campaign involving AI-generated voice messages that claimed to come from senior U.S. officials. The messages were used to build rapport before seeking access to personal accounts.

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What to do when a suspicious call comes in

  1. Pause the conversation. Don’t send money or disclose personal or account information while someone is pressuring you. End the call, or say you’ll call back. Don’t let urgency or a demand for secrecy stop you from checking.
  2. Call the person independently. Use a saved number or one you confirm independently. Don’t use a number, link, or contact detail provided during the suspicious interaction. The FTC’s advice is simple: “Don’t trust the voice. Call the person who supposedly contacted you and verify the story. Use a phone number you know is theirs.”
  3. Check with someone else you trust. If you can’t reach the person who supposedly called, contact another family member or friend. Ask them to help verify what is happening rather than acting on the caller’s version alone.
  4. Use a family phrase as an extra check. Ask a question only the real person would know, or use a secret word or phrase your family agreed on in advance. The FBI recommends setting up a family secret word or phrase; treat it as an additional check, not a substitute for calling back independently.
  5. Be especially cautious about pressured payments. A demand for a wire transfer, cryptocurrency, payment-app transfer, or gift card is a reason to stop and verify before doing anything.

How to prepare before anyone calls

  • Agree with family members on a secret word or phrase and keep it private.
  • Make sure you can reach close family members through numbers you already have saved or have confirmed independently.
  • Discuss how your family will handle urgent requests for money or sensitive information, including a rule to verify through a separate channel before acting.

Why you can’t reliably spot a clone by listening

There is no dependable checklist of audio glitches that proves a call is fake. The FBI cautions that AI-generated content can be difficult to identify and cloned voices can sound nearly identical. If you doubt whether a message is authentic, verify it through a trusted channel; in situations involving the FBI alert’s described campaign, the FBI advises contacting relevant security officials or the agency when authenticity is in doubt.

The FTC Office of Technology’s April 2024 analysis describes approaches at different stages: prevention or authentication before audio reaches a listener, detection or monitoring during a call, and evaluation of an existing recording afterward. It says detection efficacy varies and signals may become harder to find as voice cloning improves. The FTC’s conclusion is that there is no single solution.

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The FTC’s Voice Cloning Challenge page describes proposed approaches, including comparing genuine and synthetic voice patterns, protections intended to hinder cloning, recording-origin authentication concepts, and real-time liveness detection. Those proposals are not proof that a reliable consumer detector is available for incoming calls. Don’t treat a detector—or your impression of how a voice sounds—as a replacement for an independent callback.

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How to report a suspected voice-cloning scam

Report suspected fraud to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. The FTC also recommends contacting your state attorney general. If money or account access may be at risk, contact the relevant bank, payment service, or organization through contact details you obtain independently; don’t rely on information supplied by the caller.

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