Voice cloning used in silent call phone scams in France
Scammers in France are reportedly using AI voice cloning in silent phone call scams. A victim answering an unknown call with "allo" (hello) allows scammers to record their voice sample, which is then cloned using AI tools to impersonate them in fraudulent calls to their contacts seeking money.
What happened
An unknown number calls a recipient, but no one responds. When the recipient answers with 'allo,' the scammer records this voice sample.
Using AI voice cloning tools, the recorded voice is cloned with high fidelity and used to impersonate the victim in fraudulent calls to their contacts, claiming emergencies and requesting money or sensitive banking information.
The voice recordings may also be resold on the dark web in lists of active phone numbers and cloned voice samples.
Reported impact
According to Bitdefender, a cybersecurity specialist, victims of these scams risk losing money through fake emergency appeals and exposure of sensitive banking information.
The scams are difficult to detect because the calls do not always originate from masked or suspect numbers; they may appear to come from known contacts or numbers beginning with 06.
Index analysis
Cybersecurity experts warn that a single spoken word is sufficient for scammers to obtain an exploitable voice sample for AI cloning.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.