Florida Woman Loses $15K to AI Voice Scam Mimicking Daughter in Distress

A Hillsborough County woman was conned out of $15,000 after scammers cloned her daughter’s voice to fake a desperate call for help after a fabricated car crash. The incident has drawn national attention, spotlighting the growing danger of AI-powered voice scams.

Sharon, a Florida resident and mother, received a harrowing phone call on July 12. It sounded exactly like her daughter April – crying, panicked, and claiming she had been arrested after a car accident severely injured a pregnant woman.

Another person then got on the line, identied himself as a lawyer, and requested $15,000 for bail.

‘I know my daughter’s cry’

Panicked, Sharon immediately withdrew the funds and delivered them in person to an individual she believed was affiliated with law enforcement.

“There is nobody that could convince me that it wasn’t her,” Sharon said. “I know my daughter’s cry.”

“He gave very specific instructions,” Sharon said. “He told me not to tell the bank what the money was for that it could affect my daughter’s credit.”

She withdrew the money and placed it in a box as told. A black Chevy Tahoe soon showed up to her house to pick up the package.

The situation then took an even stranger turn: According to wfla.com, Sharon received another call saying the injured woman’s unborn child had died and that the family, described as “Christian people,” had agreed not to sue her daughter if she provided another $30,000.

It was at this point that Sharon’s nephew, his daughter’s son, suspected something was amiss. The family eventually got on the phone with the real April, who’d been busy at work while the ordeal was unfolding.

“I screamed,” Sharon said. “When I heard her voice, I broke down. She was fine. She was still at work.”

“I pray this doesn’t happen to anyone else,” Sharon told reporters. “My husband and I are recently retired. That money was our savings.”

The family, reeling from the emotional and financial toll, launched a GoFundMe campaign titled "Prayer and Recovery Help for John and Sharon - AI Scammed," seeking community support to offset the loss.

A typical AI-powered deepfake

The incident was the result of an elaborate scam orchestrated using deepfake audio technology to replicate the woman’s voice with chilling accuracy. And the trend is picking up.

The Trapp family in the San Francisco Bay Area suffered the exact same trickery last year when they got a frantic call from their “son” saying he’d been in a car accident, injured a pregnant woman, and needed $15,000 in bail money.

The scammers posed not only as the son but also as police, instructing the distressed mother to quickly withdraw the cash from her bank and hand it to a courier already on his way to the family’s house.

How to protect yourself against voice cloning scams

These cases highlight the alarming capabilities of generative AI when weaponized by criminals.

Even a short audio clip – like a social media video or voicemail – can be enough for scammers to train an AI model to mimic someone’s voice convincingly.

But there are ways to protect yourself:

·      Limit your digital footprint: Be mindful of sharing personal videos and audio online, as they can be used for voice cloning

·      Stay vigilant: Always question unexpected calls that instill a sense of urgency. If you don’t recognize the number, hang up and call your loved ones directly.

·      Create a ‘family password:’ Establish verbal security codes (passwords) with trusted friends and family members. When in doubt, ask them something only they would know to answer.

·      Use a scam detection tool: If you're suspicious of a certain phone call, email or text, consider using Scamio, our clever chatbot designed specifically to combat socially engineered fraud attacks. Simply describe the situation to Scamio and let it guide you to safety.

Make it a habit to stay informed about the latest scams. Regularly educate yourself on emerging threats and teach your family and colleagues to do the same. Read up on the cyber news to know what scammers exploit as technology constantly evolves.

You may also want to read:

How to Spot a Voice Cloning Scam

‘Mom, I Crashed the Car!’: Scammers Clone Son’s Voice to Ask Parents for $15,000 Bailout

Outwit the Swindlers: How to Spot Sophisticated Scams Online