Celebrity AI Scams: How to Protect Yourself from Fake Endorsements

Scammers are using AI to create fake celebrity endorsements, and it's a growing problem. A recent study found that 72% of Americans have seen a fake celebrity or influencer endorsement online. Taylor Swift is the most impersonated celebrity, followed by Scarlett Johansson, Jenna Ortega, and Sydney Sweeney. The majority of the top 10 impersonated celebrities are pop culture icons or musicians, with only two men making the list: Tom Cruise and LeBron James. These scams are not just limited to fake endorsements. Scammers are also using AI to create fake giveaways and push fake products. They rely on getting people to interact with their content, whether that's clicking on bogus links, applying for fraudulent giveaways, or buying fake products. For example, when Taylor Swift announced her engagement to Travis Kelce, scammers created ads for fake merchandise based on Kelce's proposal. AI tools like image, video, and audio generators offer bad actors a new path to create fake endorsements, giveaways, or push fake products. All the scammer needs to do is create a social media post convincing enough. And it does work, with 39% of people having clicked on one of these false endorsements and 10% having put their personal information at risk and lost hundreds of dollars on average.Identifying AI-generated content is difficult, but there are some things you can keep an eye on. Inspect the video or image closely for disappearing and reappearing objects, weirdly shiny, plastic-like looks, or any other signs that it's not real. Check for a watermark, as many AI generators will automatically add one. Also, make sure Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube hasn't already labeled the post as AI-generated. Even in the age of AI, the tips for spotting a scam aren't so different from pre-AI times. Scammers are still using the same tactics, such as creating a sense of urgency or emotional reaction. They may also ask for personal information or payment through crypto, payment apps like Venmo, or other unauthorized sources. Being on guard and vigilant with sharing your personal information can help you avoid falling for a scam. Just because something says it's endorsed or used by a celebrity doesn't mean it actually is. Always think before you click and check the source of the information.