With the rise of artificial intelligence and deepfake technology, Americans of all ages have fallen prey to online scams promoted by images of popular celebrities. It turns out that there are some celebrities that scammers can use to trap their victims.
Computer security company McAfee has released its list of the top celebrities being used for online impersonation scams in 2024, and the list includes some well-known actors who have worked in the industry for decades, as well as young stars on the rise in Hollywood.
“Risks are increasing as cybercriminals use advanced AI tools to create more believable scams, making celebrity names perfect bait for curious consumers,” said Abhishek Karnik, Head of Threat Research at McAfee. Hollywood Reporter. “So people need to be careful and think twice before clicking. “While AI-generated content is not always harmful, it is becoming increasingly difficult to tell what is real and what is fake.”
At the top of the list is the famous actress Scarlett Johansson. By chance, Black widow Star spoke out against her voice being used by AI earlier this year, when it was revealed that OpenAI was using her voice for its virtual assistant technology, despite Johansson turning down an offer to license her voice for the project.
The likenesses of other A-list celebrities including Taylor Swift, Sydney Sweeney, Johnny Depp and Blake Lively have been used to scam people online. The most common use was fake celebrity endorsements, giveaways, and crypto scams. Former president Donald Trump even used a deepfake of Taylor Swift to imply that the pop star supports him in the 2024 presidential race.
Read the top 10 below and be careful if you receive messages from any of them.
- Scarlett Johansson
- Kylie Jenner
- Taylor Swift
- Anya Taylor-Joy
- Tom Hanks
- Sabrina Carpenter
- Sydney Sweeney
- Blake Lively
- Johnny Depp
- Addison Rae
