PG Music Home Forums General Discussion Off-Topic AI put to good use

There has been a lot of talk about AI here so I thought some of you may be interested in this. The weekly Scambuster news letter is very helpful in alerting one to various scams, viruses, malware, etc.

An article from Scambusters.org; they said we can share this.

Artificial intelligence is everywhere, including the catalog of tricks used by scammers to dupe consumers.

But the people who create our PC anti-virus and security apps are also using it to fight back against the fraudsters.

In this week's issue, we'll explain what the good guys are up to and how they can help you stay safer on your PC and mobile devices.

Let's get started...
How Artificial Intelligence Can Help You Beat Scammers
Big players in the field of internet security for home users are turning the tables on scammers by using artificial intelligence (AI) to spot and stop them.

Crooks are already using AI to perpetrate their frauds but they're not having things all their own way. The same type of technology that helps them launch mass scam attacks, concoct phishing messages, and create convincing fake websites is now being used to protect consumers.

AI is being trained to recognize programming patterns used by fraudsters for phishing, fake websites, and deceptive ads. It can also analyze texts in emails, social media posts, and online reviews to spot false statements. And the massive amount of real-world data that's fed into AI programs can help predict future fraudulent tactics.

AI is also being used to scrutinize images and videos to check if they're real and to monitor network traffic to spot potential security risks and data breaches.

Many of these advances are being directed toward helping businesses and other organizations repel the fraudsters but they're also gradually seeping into the consumer world with the promise of making online life safer for home users.

This is in addition to regular anti-virus apps that all of us should be using to protect against hacking and malware from the likes of Norton, Kaspersky, Trend Micro, and others.

But anti-virus protection by itself is not enough these days. The big security firms and some specialists have enrolled AI to beef up their offerings of security suites and add-ons like:

Password managers to generate unique and strong passwords, store them securely, and synchronize them between different devices.
Email filtering to block spam and suspicious messages.
Virtual private networks (VPNs), not only to hide users' identities and locations but also to encrypt (jumble up) data so it's meaningless even if hacked.
Browser extensions that scrutinize web pages before they even open.
Ad blockers that can spot malicious ads and online tracking and surveillance.
Robocall and scam call identification and blocking.
Biometrics like fingerprint and facial recognition.

We've previously covered these topics at Scambusters. Search for them by topic on our website.

Recent advances have also seen the introduction of reverse image search, enabling users to identify picture sources and fake images. Plus, of course, all the main search engines, like Google, Bing, and Safari, enable users to check out the reputations of individuals and organizations they interact with.
Tools to Help Users Spot Scams
Now, we're starting to see more AI-driven apps and extensions that specifically aim to help users spot scams. Here are some of the tools:

Chatbots that enable you to submit texts, emails, images, and links for security analysis. They're checked against a database of known scams and also analyzed using some of the tools we mentioned above. Example: Scamio by Bitdefender.
Automatic detection involves real-time monitoring of texts and links and blocking of risky sites. Example: McAfee Scam Protection.
Alerts about fake online stores, suspicious investment opportunities, and phony prize schemes. Example: Trend Micro Check.
Self-learning. Some security apps are capable of using AI to increase their own knowledge and understanding of scams by monitoring user experience. In other words, they get better over time. Example: Norton Genie.
Website analysis and trustworthiness apps review a site for factors like age, domain registration, and age. Example: StopTheScam.
Fraud spotting for people who receive online payments using risk analysis and information about transactions to help spot fraudulent transactions. Example: FraudLabs Pro.

(Note that many apps offer overlapping functions - they may cover all or similar risks but sometimes in different ways. We do not make recommendations about the effectiveness or suitability of individual products.)

As the use of artificial intelligence continues its rapid advance, we can expect to see improvements in the effectiveness of these tools. Ultimately, perhaps, browsers will come with these sorts of actions built-in.

AI systems can help identify potential scams more efficiently, but human analysts and law enforcement agencies are still responsible for investigating and taking appropriate actions against confirmed scams.

And while anti-scam software will become more important in our everyday online activities, remember that the crooks are also investing big money in using artificial intelligence to make their scams more effective and difficult to detect.

So, there's no substitute for pairing the tools we've mentioned with good old common sense and vigilance.

Thanks for sharing. The scammers are in fact getting smarter and smarter and we get at least a couple scam attempts per week.

So, there's no substitute for pairing the tools we've mentioned with good old common sense and vigilance. So true.

For at least 3 years we've had a policy that whenever we recieve an email or text that asks us to take action we won't take that action but rather (whenever possible) CALL the institution and verify.

PS> And never go to the website they point to and get the phone number, but have the valid numbers in your contacts list.

It's not "if" your information is on the dark web. It is there. If you have a credit card or any other kind of credit account, all of the companies have been hacked/compromised. Some companies were in the news that millions of accounts were exposed.

So... never contact anyone who sends you an email. Either ignore it totally or if it sounds reasonable, contact the institution directly with the phone number on your bill or the back of your card.

What is a bit scary is the scammers can sample a few seconds of the voice of a family member, then call you with a sob story, seemingly from that family member.

At the top of the preparedness list should be education. I call scammers all day and mess with them. I try to gather emails and bank account information of the money mules, which I report to the banks and they shut them down. The like to use Anydesk and ConnectWise to connect to the victim's computers. I let them connect (to my virtual computer) and report the connection ID. In a matter of 10 minutes that connection ID is made invalid, and the IP that was using it is blocked. They have to stop their operation, reset the network router so it pulls a new IP, and uninstall Anydesk from every computer and reinstall it so it gets a new connection ID. That doesn't close the call center, but it stops them for a good long time. That network router has to sit for 24 hours until the lease IP from the provider renews at midnight. The higher level scambaiters know how to quickly reverse the connection so while the scammer can see YOUR computer, YOU can see THEIR computer. Once they have that reversed connection, they download all kinds of information, often spreadsheets full of victim information. They then start calling the victims to see if they were scammed, for how much, and help them try to recover the money they lost and also assist them, with securing the computer. Once you have downloaded Anydesk or ConnectWise Screen Connect that program plants a driver that keeps that connection alive forever, so any time you turn on your computer that can connect. They then look for password files, peruse your email, look for contacts with phone numbers to target, look where you have browsed to, download your photos... (I have a folder called Nudes. In that file is 200 files named nude1 thru nude200. They are the same picture of an anatomically correct horse. If they steal that folder, they will be shocked.)

If you are at all interested in seeing scambaiting in action, visit twitch.tv and look for FunGuyMedia. He is an English guy who is great at baiting the scammers. It's fun to watch in real time. There are also many great examples on youtube. FunGuy is there, Scan Sandwich, Scammer Revolts. A lot of good ones. Scammer Payback is the king, but he is taking some time off to address some personal matters.


+++THIS LINK+++ will take you directly to Fun Guy's Twitch page. He usually goes live about noon or so EST. BE AWARE that it sometimes gets quite salty so if you are at all language sensitive you may not appreciate what you hear. He can get a little carried away when he works a scammer over. Plus the British sense of humor can be a little different and bawdy. Our people over in Jolly Olde can attest to that.

I've seen the reports on the nightly news on people being scammed by this. And what has baffled me is why not simply call the person who is having the "crisis" to verify weather the sob story is true?

If the message is "his phone is destroyed", OK, somebody drive to his house and ring the doorbell.

Exactly, verification is very important.

Since you are talking with AI, it can answer questions and that's it's weakness. You simply have a secret question/answer with your family members and slip it into the conversation.

What is Uncle Bobs favorite hobby? (collecting beetles) Did you get Aunt Sally's favorite bottle of wine? ( Aunt Sally doesn't drink) If you get anything other than the correct answer, it's a scam. None of it has to be real. Kinda like my security customers and the central station calling for a false alarm..... one, and only one response is the correct one. We had one with our daughters when they were in school. Someone says they were sent by us to pick them up? What's the password?

I got an email from a friend who said he was in Africa and his bag got stolen which had his money and plane ticket and he needed to buy a ticket to get home....could I wire him the money? and it contained a Western Union account number. I happened to know he was in the USA at the time and since he was a missionary, while the story kinda made sense, he was working in South America, not africa. I called him on his phone and he answered and confirmed it was a scam and he had been hacked. I quickly called several other folks I know who were in his email list and one of them was headed to the western union office as I called. He was about to send quite a bit of money to a scammer in africa. You have to be careful.

Did you also follow up and report the Wester Union account as a scammer?