AI Albo: Prime Minister promises 'financial freedom' in deepfake video
'Registration takes just a few minutes, submit an application, get a free consultation, invest, and watch the system earn for you,' the fake Prime Minister says in the clip.
The Albanese clone claims those who follow the QR code in the video can start earning up to '$25,000 a month' trading cryptocurrency.
'Greetings. From the first day I became prime minister, I wanted to improve the tax system. We will not fully get rid of taxes, of course, but any resident will be able to receive dividends from them,' Albanese says, according to the scam transcript.
While the voice sounded somewhat like the prime minister, certain words were robotic and spoken with an American accent.
Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services Daniel Mulino urged social media giants to take stronger action against deepfake scams, warning that platforms like YouTube are not doing enough to stop the spread of criminal content.
Mulino pointed to the federal government's significant investment in scam prevention, noting that more than $180million had already been committed to combat fraud and online deception.
'We've introduced legislation that will require social media companies, banks and telcos to do much more to stop scammers, or face penalties of up to $50 million,' Mr Mulino added.
It's not the first time high-profile Australians have been targeted by deepfake scams.
In 2023, Australian entrepreneur Dick Smith launched a blistering attack on tech giant Meta after his image was used by scammers.
He accused the social media giant of enabling criminal groups to exploit Australians through deepfake scam ads across Facebook and Instagram.
'It's completely fake. These deepfakes are being used to trick everyday Australians into giving up their hard-earned money,' Mr Smith said.
'The greed is so great, they're running ads from criminal organisations. Australians have already lost millions.'
Meanwhile, one of Australia's richest people, Andrew Forrest, is suing Meta for hosting ads using his likeness in fraudulent Facebook cryptocurrency ads.
In March, it was revealed there were about 230,000 fake ads using Mr Forrest's likeness spread across the company's platforms.
Despite a reported 25.9 per cent drop in scam losses between 2023 and 2024, Australians still lost an estimated $2billion last year, according to data from the National Anti-Scam Centre.
Deputy Chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), Catriona Lowe, has urged Australians to be vigilant against deepfakes.
'Scammers are creating fake news articles and deepfake videos to convince people that celebrities and well-known public figures are making huge sums of money using online investment trading platforms,' Ms Lowe said.
'In fact, it is a scam.'
Meta's independent Oversight Board slammed the company in June for failing to do enough to stop AI deepfake scams featuring high-profile individuals and celebrities.
The board found Meta is letting 'significant' amounts of scam content slip through because its content reviewers lack the authority and training to act on fake personas or manipulated videos.
The case involved a deepfake ad of Brazilian soccer legend Ronaldo Nazário promoting a gambling app, which remained online even after being reported over 50 times.
In response, Meta disputed the board's findings, claiming many were 'inaccurate', and that facial recognition technology was being used to combat celebrity scams.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scottish Sun
2 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Top UK restaurant chain shuts ALL its sites as it goes bust after nearly a decade in business
It was an award winning restaurant LAST ORDERS Top UK restaurant chain shuts ALL its sites as it goes bust after nearly a decade in business Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A TOP UK restaurant chain has shut the doors on all its sites due to going bust after nearly a decade in business. The restaurant, which had branches in Exeter, Taunton and Cardiff, entered liquidation, having to close its doors and leave some staff unpaid. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 5 Eat The Bird Exeter Credit: Eat The Bird 5 Eat The Bird Exeter Credit: Eat The Bird 5 Eat The Bird's fried chicken burger was multi-award winning Credit: Eat The Bird Eat the Bird gained popularity as a restaurant after first opening in Taunton in 2017. It describes itself as a "multi-award winning burger joint", and even bagged the Street Food Dish of the Year award in 2023. Two more branches launched in 2022, first in Exeter and then in Cardiff. The company, however, failed to pay its meat supplier, Fairfax Meadow Europe Ltd, and closed down completely on July 22. Under the ownership of Daniel Aldridge, Eat the Bird must pay Fairfax Meadow from its assets in accordance with a court order mandate. Mr Aldridge confirmed that several staff members are also yet to recieve their wages after the sudden closure. He told Somerset Country Gazette these staff will be paid. "I am working closely with one of the directors, and we are working hard to get the situation sorted," Mr Aldridge said. The company's struggles and subsequent closure have been attributed to both escalating costs and the aftermath of Covid-19. The businessman added: "We were weighed down by the hidden nasties post-COVID. "We have so many empty shops in Taunton, we need them filled. Pub chain collapses into administration as SIX sites shut their doors for good and 159 job losses "It takes people like me to get them sorted, it's no good commenting on a shop's closure via Facebook." People nevertheless took to Facebook to express their shock at the news that the much-loved restaurant had closed. One Taunton resident posted after learning about the closure: "That is very sad. "Great staff, great food. "I am very disappointed. "Best wishes to all of the employees who have looked after us so well over the last few years." Another added: "One of my favourite places to eat in Taunton. "Very sad." A third chimed in: "Gutting! "I love that place." Eat the Bird's shutting down comes just a week after a popular online food critic praised the branch in Exeter. Danny from Rate My Takeaway's YouTube channel sampled the restaurant's Dirty Donald and My Big Fat Greek in a clip that has raked up more than 95,000 views. He described the food as "absolutely fantastic". The branch in Exeter had actually been planning to move into a shopping centre last autumn, which became delayed last-minute. 5 Eat The Bird has endeavoured to make the best fried chicken in town Credit: Eat The Bird
Finextra
2 hours ago
- Finextra
Dosh partners Visa and Pismo for digital banking in New Zealand
Dosh, New Zealand's first locally owned digital wallet and aspiring digital bank, today announced a strategic collaboration with Visa and Pismo to power its next phase of growth and innovation. 0 This content is provided by an external author without editing by Finextra. It expresses the views and opinions of the author. Founded in Auckland in 2021, Dosh has quickly established itself as a challenger brand in New Zealand's financial landscape. With plans underway to become a registered bank, Dosh is setting the stage to be the country's first fully digital, locally owned bank. This new collaboration will see Dosh leverage Visa and Pismo's technology to enhance its platform—delivering faster, more secure, and more scalable digital banking services to its Kiwi customers. 'Working with Visa and Pismo allows us to move faster and scale with confidence,' said Shane Marsh, CEO of Dosh. 'As we step into this exciting next chapter, our focus is on offering New Zealanders a modern banking experience that's smart, simple, and puts value back in their pockets. This collaboration is a key step in that journey.' The integration of Pismo's cloud-native core banking and payments platform – acquired by Visa in 2024 – will provide Dosh with the flexibility, enhanced security, and speed needed to support its expanding suite of services, including spend, save, and borrow solutions, all from one intuitive banking app. With these enhanced capabilities, Dosh aims to grow its customer base significantly over the next five years. As part of this transition, Dosh will migrate its 40,000+ accounts to the Pismo platform, with the full migration expected to be completed by May 2026. Customers can expect a seamless transition with no disruption to their service. 'We want Kiwi fintechs to thrive, so we're proud to support Dosh in their mission to bring more innovation and choice to New Zealanders,' said Anthony Watson, Visa Country Manager for New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. 'Their vision aligns closely with Visa's ongoing commitment to digital innovation and financial inclusion.' Vishal Dalal, CEO at Pismo, added: 'Dosh is known for delivering a simple and intuitive customer experience. We're excited to help enable that with a modern, scalable platform powering it behind the scenes. We're also proud to welcome Dosh as our first client in New Zealand.' This new collaboration underscores Dosh's commitment to building a banking experience that meets the needs of modern New Zealanders – combining global technology with a local focus. 'Collaborating directly with Visa, a global leader in payments innovation, reinforces our ambition to bring world-class digital banking technology to Kiwis,' added Marsh. 'Together, with Pismo, we're building the foundation for the future of banking in New Zealand.'
Reuters
2 hours ago
- Reuters
US jury deadlocks on Tornado Cash founder's money laundering charge
NEW YORK, August 6 (Reuters) - A U.S. jury deadlocked on Wednesday on money laundering and sanctions evasion charges against the founder of Tornado Cash, opens new tab, a firm that makes cryptocurrency transactions harder to track. The jury in Manhattan federal court could not reach a verdict on charges Roman Storm conspired to launder the proceeds of hacks, including by a sanctioned North Korean government-backed group. But the jury found him guilty of the less serious charge of conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business. He faces up to five years in prison when he is sentenced by U.S. District Judge Katherine Failla at a later date. The money laundering and sanctions evasion conspiracy charges each carried possible 20-year sentences. Storm was arrested in 2023 on charges that the so-called mixer he founded helped hide more than $1 billion, including hundreds of millions of dollars for Pyongyang-backed hacking group Lazarus Group, which is blacklisted by the U.S. Treasury over its alleged financial support of North Korea. Storm, 36, had pleaded not guilty to all three felony charges he faced. In his closing argument on July 30 after a two-week trial in Manhattan federal court, defense lawyer David Patton said even though Tornado Cash's privacy tools may have been useful to criminals, Storm's intent was not to help conceal illicit funds. "There is nothing unlawful about the software that he built," Patton said. "The evidence here shows that Roman very much did not want hackers and scammers to use Tornado Cash." Prosecutor Benjamin Gianforti said Storm had been informed multiple times between 2020 and 2022 that Tornado Cash was helping criminals hide dirty money, but kept running the business out of greed. Gianforti said Tornado Cash's emphasis on user privacy was a "cover story." "The real money wasn't in protecting privacy for regular folks, it was in providing privacy for big time crypto criminals," Gianforti said. "Hackers were his best customers." Tornado Cash had itself been sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury under then-President Joe Biden's Democratic administration over its alleged support of North Korea. The Treasury lifted those sanctions in March, two months into Republican President Donald Trump's administration, saying it had reviewed legal and policy issues raised by the sanctions within "evolving technology and legal environments." Last year, one of Tornado Cash's developers, Alexey Pertsev, was sentenced to five years and four months in prison in the Netherlands for money laundering.
