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AI Safety · Consumer Warning

FBI issues warning: AI-cloned voices fuel a wave of family emergency scams

December 5, 2025 · FBI bulletin · +AI Newsroom

Phone scam warning graphic

+AI Newsroom — National Security & Cybercrime Desk. The FBI has issued urgent warnings as Americans face AI-cloned voice “family emergency” scams. Attackers clone loved ones with seconds of audio and pressure victims to send money fast. This report summarizes the FBI bulletin “AI-Cloned Voices Fuel a Dangerous Wave of Family Emergency Scams.”

A new kind of crime

Scammers now sound exactly like your child, parent, or grandparent. They scrape seconds of audio from social media, livestreams, or voicemails, clone it with generative AI, then launch emotional “family emergency” hoaxes.

How the AI voice scam unfolds

  1. Emotional hijacking: The call sounds exactly like your loved one—crying, panicked, urgent.
  2. Manufactured emergency: Claims of arrest, kidnapping, injury, or legal crisis.
  3. Forced secrecy & urgency: “Don’t call anyone. Don’t call the police.”
  4. Demands for untraceable payments: Cash drop-offs, crypto, wires, gift cards, instant payment apps.
FBI scam screenshot 1
FBI scam screenshot 2

Why these scams are spreading

  • Seconds of public audio are enough to clone a voice.
  • Fraudsters automate hundreds of calls, often targeting the elderly.
  • Caller ID spoofing makes calls look familiar or “official.”
  • Low-cost AI + real-time translation = global, multilingual scams.

How to protect your family

  1. Create a family codeword: A private phrase only close relatives know (e.g., “Grandma’s Cookies”). If the caller can’t repeat it, hang up.
  2. Independently verify: Hang up and call back using saved numbers; cross-check with another relative.
  3. Reduce public audio: Limit who can view your stories, voice notes, and posts.
  4. Be skeptical of speed + secrecy: Gift cards, crypto, instant wires, and “don’t tell anyone” are red flags.
  5. Enable MFA everywhere: Protect accounts even if your voice is spoofed to support reps.
Unknown caller phone call

If you are targeted or victimized

Report immediately—early action improves recovery odds and helps law enforcement track patterns.

  • FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3): www.ic3.gov
  • Federal Trade Commission (FTC): reportfraud.ftc.gov
  • Your local police department for a case number.

Read the bulletin

For the full FBI-related briefing and guidance, access the PDF below.

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Source: “FBI Issues New Warning: AI-Cloned Voices Fuel a Dangerous Wave of Family Emergency Scams” (PDF).