A South Korean woman has been scammed out of 500 million won ($350K USD) by someone impersonating Squid Game star Lee Jung-jae. The scammers reportedly utilized AI and Deepfake technology to scam the woman out of a large sum. Here’s a breakdown of what happened to the victim.
Catfish scams woman out of $350k using Squid Game star’s deepfakes
With the advancements in Artificial Intelligence, there has been a surge in cybercrimes, which have been aided by new AI video and image technologies. This is exactly what happened to one South Korean woman. She was scammed using deepfakes of a major South Korean celebrity, Lee Jung-jae. Fans can recognize Lee from his role in Netflix’s acclaimed series, Squid Game.
Lee Jung-jae was already a significant figure in South Korea. However, Squid Game shot him to a whole new level, making him a global star. The scammers used his popularity as a major tool to swindle a middle-aged South Korean woman.
According to local outlets, the scammers attempted to extort money from innocent victims by posing as Lee Jung-jae. Among the victims was a woman in her 50s. She sent the scammers around 500 million won over the course of six months. She believed that she was actually wiring money to the star as the scammers continued using Deepfake photos to convince her.
Moreover, the scammers sent a fake driver’s license to make it appear more authentic. They also managed to add a romantic angle to it all, making it easier to trick her.
The South Gyeongsang Provincial Police Agency is reportedly investigating the crime, as of now. Lee’s agency has also since confirmed that the actor has no connection to the scam using his name and likeness. However, this is not an isolated incident; there have been numerous reports of scammers posing as celebrities.
Originally reported by Sourav Chakraborty on Mandatory.
