By Phil Weiss, CFA, CPA, RLP®, and Robert Siciliano
Protecting your financial life involves more than investment returns, taxes, and retirement planning. It also means thinking about how you protect the assets you have already built from increasingly convincing forms of digital fraud.
AI scams are becoming more convincing and easier to personalize. Scammers can use generative AI, voice cloning, and synthetic media to impersonate people or organizations you trust, whether it is a family member calling with an emergency, someone sending new wire instructions, or an institution asking you to verify account information.
This is not simply a hypothetical concern. Fraud involving AI-generated content is already appearing in consumer and law-enforcement warnings, including schemes using synthetic voices, images, and messages to impersonate trusted people and organizations.
That may sound intimidating. The encouraging part is that you do not need to understand every new technology to reduce your risk. A few consistent habits can make it harder for a scammer to get you to act before you verify what is happening.
Key Points
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Why AI Scams Often Target People, Not Just Technology
Strong technology matters, but many successful scams take a different route. Instead of defeating a financial institution’s technical defenses, criminals may try to persuade a person to voluntarily send money, reveal credentials, or approve a transaction. Robert refers to the human tendencies these scams exploit as the Human Blindspot™.
Scammers often take advantage of two common human tendencies:
- Trust: We naturally respond to people who appear familiar, authoritative, or in need of help.
- Urgency: A supposed account problem, investment opportunity, or family emergency can create pressure to act before you verify the story.
When a convincing message or familiar-sounding voice creates panic or urgency, the goal may be to get you to act before you verify. That feeling of pressure is itself a reason to stop. Slow down, confirm the request independently, and only then decide what to do.
4 Practical Ways to Reduce Digital Fraud Risk
No single security practice can eliminate fraud risk. But a few repeatable habits can make it easier to recognize suspicious requests and harder for a scammer to rush you into a costly decision. Robert calls this building your Strategic Human Firewall™.
Here are four practical steps you can consider putting in place:
1. Verify Financial Requests Independently
Whenever you receive an unexpected request to transfer money, change payment instructions, or share sensitive account information, pause before acting. Robert’s Triple-A Protocol provides a simple way to remember the process:
- Analyze: Notice unexpected urgency, changed payment instructions, or unusual requests for money or information.
- Authenticate: Do not rely on the phone number, email address, or link contained in the request.
- Act: Contact the person or institution independently using a number you already know or obtain from a trusted source, such as an official statement or website.
2. Create a Family Verification Plan
AI voice cloning can make an emergency call sound surprisingly familiar. Consider agreeing in advance on a family code word or another verification question that an outsider would be unlikely to know. Treat that as an additional check, not your only one. If someone calls claiming a family member is in trouble, hang up and contact that person directly using a number you already know. If you cannot reach them, try another trusted family member.
3. Strengthen the Accounts That Matter Most
A few basic security practices can add meaningful layers of protection:
- Turn on Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): Enable MFA on your primary email, financial accounts, and other sensitive services. It adds another barrier if your password is compromised. Where available, consider stronger options such as an authenticator app or passkey rather than relying only on text messages.
- Use Unique Passwords: Avoid reusing the same password across multiple accounts. A reputable password manager can help you create and securely store unique passwords, reducing the number you need to remember.
4. Understand How Financial Requests Are Verified
Ask your financial adviser and other financial institutions what procedures they use before money moves or sensitive account information changes. Know how they will contact you, how unusual requests are verified, and what you should do if a request appears suspicious. Keep your contact information current and be especially cautious when payment instructions change unexpectedly.
At Apprise, we only act on transfer instructions through direct communication with the client, and only for transfers between accounts the client owns or for qualified charitable distributions made directly to charities. We do not act on instructions to send funds to other third parties.
Preparation Beats Panic
The technology used in AI scams will keep changing. The goal is not to recognize every new tool. It is to develop habits that help you slow down, verify unusual requests, and protect sensitive information before money moves.
No process eliminates every risk. But having a plan before something suspicious happens can make it easier to respond thoughtfully instead of reacting under pressure.
Want to Learn More?On Wednesday, October 21 at 7 p.m. Eastern, Robert and I will host a live Zoom discussion: Protecting Your Wealth in the Age of AI: Practical Strategies Against Digital Fraud We’ll discuss AI voice cloning, deepfakes, the Human Blindspot™, passwords, and practical ways to make yourself a harder target for fraud. Register for the October 21 event: Zoom Registration Link. |
Frequently Asked Questions About AI Scams
1. How are AI scams making financial fraud more convincing?
AI can help scammers create more convincing voices, images, messages, and impersonations. That can make a fraudulent request appear to come from someone or some organization you already trust. The technology may be new, but the objective is familiar. It tries to get you to act before you verify.
2. What should I do if I receive an urgent request for money?
Pause before acting. Do not rely on the phone number, email address, or link contained in the request. Contact the person or institution independently using contact information you already know or obtain from a trusted source.
3. Can a family code word help protect against voice-cloning scams?
It can provide another layer of verification, but it should not be your only one. Consider creating a broader family verification plan that includes independently contacting the person who supposedly needs help or another trusted family member.
4. Are strong passwords and multi-factor authentication enough to prevent fraud?
No single security measure can eliminate fraud risk. Unique passwords, a reputable password manager, and multi-factor authentication can add important layers of protection, but they should be combined with good verification habits.
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About the Authors
Phil Weiss, CFA, CPA, RLP®
Phil is the founder of Apprise Wealth Management, an independent Registered Investment Adviser serving women navigating major life transitions. He combines financial planning, investment management, tax awareness, and life planning to help clients align their financial resources with what matters most to them.
Robert Siciliano, CSP, CSI, CITRMS
Robert is a cybersecurity expert, author, speaker, and creator of the Strategic Human Firewall™. For more than 30 years, he has educated individuals and organizations about fraud prevention, identity theft, personal security, and cybersecurity.
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For firm disclosures, see here: https://apprisewealth.com/disclosures/
Phil Weiss founded Apprise Wealth Management, where he works with women facing new beginnings. He started his financial services career in 1987 working as a tax professional for Deloitte & Touche. For the past 25 years, he has worked extensively in the areas of personal finance and investment management. Phil is a CFA charterholder, a CPA, and an RLP®.
