Latest news with #AbbyJosephCohen
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Finance execs are the new targets of deepfake videos
It's no secret that AI-generated hyper-realistic impersonations known as deepfakes have become more sophisticated. Last year, it was a wake-up call when a finance worker was duped by a fraudulent AI-digitally manipulated video featuring a deepfake of the firm's CFO ordering money transfers that cost the Hong Kong-based company millions. But now fraudsters are imitating prominent finance professionals on Instagram. In a new report, Fortune's Jim Edwards details how a video ad campaign on Instagram used a convincing deepfake of Goldman Sachs executives Abby Joseph Cohen and David Kostin. The goal was to tempt amateurs who want to get rich quickly into a stock-buying WhatsApp group. 'Abby Joseph Cohen is a legend in the world of investing,' Edwards writes. 'She was chief investment strategist at Goldman Sachs until 2008, when she moved to the bank's Global Markets Institute, before retiring from Goldman in 2021. Currently, she is a professor at Columbia Business School.' So it was most likely a surprise for retail investors to see Joseph Cohen in a video on their Instagram feed with a compelling offer: 'We have found three severely undervalued technology stocks. Join my group now to get it immediately. Anyone who owns these three stocks in the next five years can retire comfortably.' The video is fake, Edwards confirmed with Goldman Sachs, and it was seemingly generated by AI. 'There should always be caution exercised around any unverified communication purporting to come from a Goldman Sachs employee,' the bank said. And Meta, owner of Instagram, took down the video. The deepfake was so convincing even people who have met Joseph Cohen in person likely would think it was real, at least at first glance, according to Edwards. But she isn't the only financial expert who's a target. 'There is a whole raft of fake AI video chief investment officers making the rounds on social media right now,' Edwards warns. You can read the complete report here. In an era of deepfakes, cybersecurity is indeed top of mind for CFOs who are collaborating with chief information security officers to mitigate risk. A recent prediction from Deloitte's Center for Financial Services said generative AI could amplify deepfakes and enable fraud losses to reach $40 billion by 2027 in the U.S. From the workplace to social media, deepfakes are becoming more pervasive. But companies can use AI to beat fraudsters at their own game. Have a good weekend. See you on Monday. Sheryl This story was originally featured on
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Goldman Sachs execs' images used in deepfake video campaign on Instagram
A video ad campaign on Instagram used convincing deepfakes of Goldman Sachs executives Abby Joseph Cohen and David Kostin, in addition to Michael Hewson (formerly of CMC Markets), to tempt amateurs who want to get rich quick into a stock-buying Whatsapp group. Fortune confirmed the videos were fake and Meta says it has removed the campaign from its platform. Abby Joseph Cohen is a legend in the world of investing. She was the chief investment strategist until 2008 at Goldman Sachs, when she moved to the bank's Global Markets Institute, before retiring from Goldman in 2021. Currently, she is a professor at Columbia Business School. Retail investors may remember her as a frequent guest on Wall Street Week, the PBS TV show that ran for 32 years until 2002, on which the great and the good from the world of finance sat down with the late Louis Rukeyser and discussed the financial events of the preceding seven days in calm, measured tones. So it may have come as a surprise to many to see Joseph Cohen pop up in their Instagram feeds with an offer that's hard to refuse: 'We have found three severely undervalued technology stocks. Join my group now to get it immediately. Anyone who owns these three stocks in the next five years can retire comfortably,' the video says. This is decidedly not something Joseph Cohen would be likely to do. The video is fake, Fortune has confirmed, seemingly generated by AI. It's a pretty good fake, however. Even people who have met Joseph Cohen in person would be likely to think it was real, at least on first glance. 'This is a fraudulent message and not representative of Goldman Sachs,' the bank told Fortune. 'There should always be caution exercised around any unverified communication purporting to come from a Goldman Sachs employee. Customers can learn more by visiting and should report any suspected fraud by emailing abuse@ a spokesperson said. In fact, there is a whole raft of fake AI video chief investment officers making the rounds on social media right now. Goldman's chief U.S. equity strategist, David Kostin, who has been at the bank for 30 years, has one. Former CMC Markets chief analyst Michael Hewson (16 years at the company) has another. 'I've set up a Whatsapp investment group. Every day I share three stocks,' the fake Kostin says. Hewson has a similar pitch. The videos don't just look like the three execs, they sound like them too. One of the few giveaways is that their lips don't quite match the words they are saying—a common flaw with AI deepfakes. CMC and Meta, Instagram's owner, also confirmed the videos were fake. The latter told Fortune the ad campaign would be taken down. 'We've removed the content brought to our attention. People who impersonate others on Facebook and Instagram violate our policies, and we remove this content when it's found,' a spokesperson said. The company staging the campaign was undeterred, however. This Fortune staffer joined the fake Joseph Cohen's Whatsapp group, just to see what was happening. An administrator sent us this message: 'Hello, investors! I am the group administrator of Horizon Investments, and I sincerely invite you to join the investment feast at 9:20 am tomorrow (EST). Our chief analyst Mr. Austin Fitch will also share his professional insights with everyone in this group.' I declined the offer of the 'feast' and sent a direct message to 'Danielle Learned,' the Whatsapp contact with a St. Louis area code who recruited me. I asked her why she was using fake videos to recruit investors on Instagram. She replied: 'Hello, Abby Cohen and our agency are in partnership. Abby Cohen is participating in the joint deployment of some high-quality US stock trading strategies developed by Mr. Austin of our agency." Again, Joseph Cohen has nothing to do with this. Learned then recommended I buy SoFi Technologies at $11.50 per share on the Nasdaq. 'Please let me know when you complete the order and I will let you know when to sell.' (We didn't.) A spokesperson for the real Horizon Investments told Fortune that they too had no idea their company and staff names were being used in the scam. "In no way would Horizon ever be involved in something like this nor would any of its people lend their names, images or backing to something like this," a representative said. The "Fitch" character on Whatsapp did not respond to a message requesting comment. This story was originally featured on
Bloomberg
04-03-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Abby Joseph Cohen on Trump's Trade War, Inflation and the Fed
Donald Trump's return to the White House was cause for celebration on Wall Street. In the month after Election Day alone, the S&P 500 Index jumped more than 5%, adding some $2.8 trillion in value, on the expectation that the new administration would juice the economy. Then, even as enthusiasm eased as the calendar turned to 2025, mainly on concerns tariffs and deportations could stoke inflation, stocks remained at or near all-time highs. The S&P 500 hit a record on Feb. 19, putting it up 6.3%, or more than $3 trillion, since Election Day. Two weeks later, those gains are gone Columbia Business School professor and former Goldman Sachs senior investment strategist Abby Joseph Cohen examines the broad ripple effects of the costly trade dispute between the US and its closest trading partners, and how they will ultimately trickle down to American citizens. Professor Cohen speaks with Tom Keene and Jess Menton on Bloomberg Radio. (Source: Bloomberg)
Bloomberg
04-03-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Trade War Damage to US Could be "Severe": Abby Joseph Cohen
President Donald Trump delivered on his threat to hit Canada and Mexico with sweeping import levies and doubled an existing charge on China, spurring swift reprisals that plunged the world economy into a deepening trade war. The new US tariffs — 25% duties on most Canadian and Mexican imports and raising the charge on China to 20% — apply to roughly $1.5 trillion in annual imports, an expansive move signaling to markets that the Republican president is committed to inflicting economic pain to generate fresh revenue and create domestic manufacturing jobs. Columbia Business School professor and former Goldman Sachs senior investment strategist Abby Joseph Cohen explains why she sees this trade war as "dangerous" for the United States and how it harkens back to the economy of the 19th century. Professor Cohen speaks with Tom Keene and Jess Menton on Bloomberg Radio. (Source: Bloomberg)
