AI-driven scams cause rising financial losses globally
Scammers increasingly use AI-generated voice clones and deepfake videos to defraud people globally. In Australia, scam reports dropped 24% in the first half of 2025, but financial losses rose 26% to $174.8 million, with higher impact on non-English speakers and Indigenous Australians.
What happened
Australians reported 108,305 scams and $174.8 million in financial losses to Scamwatch in the first half of 2025, with fake websites, online ads and contact through social media being scammers' preferred methods.
AI has become the 'weapon of choice' for scammers, with emerging threats powered by artificial intelligence including voice cloning and deepfake videos.
Reported impact
While the total number of scams reported dropped 24 per cent compared to the same period last year, financial losses increased by 26 per cent.
A 40.5 per cent increase in reports involving losses was noted, with higher rates among those who speak English as a second language (44 per cent) and First Nations Australians (55.3 per cent).
Index analysis
Romance scams are among the most prominent fraud schemes, leaving victims not only financially devastated but emotionally manipulated.
Technology is enabling scammers to reach more people than ever before, with scams becoming more sophisticated and harder to detect.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.