I'm not easily shocked. Trust me, I’ve been around long enough to have witnessed some internet weirdness. The scope, gall and truly remarkable success of tech support scammers still regularly flummoxes me. It's not just about the money they steal. It's about the lives they unravel.

Trust Betrayal Hurts The Most

We’re conditioned not to believe in ourselves, to defer to authority, to bow down before expertise. These scammers know how to exploit that built-in trust, taking advantage of our vulnerabilities. They may even call you and pretend to be from Microsoft, Apple, or another big name tech company that you would normally trust. They weave an amazing story of viruses, hacked accounts and soon to be lost data. And because we're already stressed about technology (let's be honest, who isn't?), we're often more willing to believe them than we should be.

It’s the wolf in sheep’s clothing, instead of eating your flock, it gaslights them first.

I listened to a story the other day about a woman named Sarah (actually, that’s not her name—please don’t tell HUD. Sarah was a retired schoolteacher, at ease with email and online banking, but far from a whiz kid. Just a few weeks ago, she had gotten a phone call from a man saying her computer was compromised and her bank account was in danger. The "tech support agent" walked her through installing remote access software, assuring her it was necessary to fix the problem. Within minutes, he had total control of her computer and emptied her life savings.

The financial blow was catastrophic, to be sure, but the true damage came from the emotional fallout. The shame. The feeling of utter helplessness. The trust to prevent the loss of trust in a world that already seems more complicated and intimidating every day. This isn't just theft; it's a violation.

AI Makes Scams Incredibly Believable

After all, technology should be making our lives easier, right? Rather, it’s equipping scammers with more and more high-tech instruments to get our money. And I don’t just mean fancier emails that sound more persuasive. I’m not just referring to AI-powered scams like this one that are hard to tell apart from the real thing!

Think about this: AI can now create deepfake audio and video. Just picture getting a phone call from someone that sounds exactly like your CEO. They then tell you to wire the funds to a different account. Or getting a hyper-personalized email that sounds exactly like you would write it, and speaks to just the concerns you have.

  • Phishing emails – More convincing than ever.
  • Deepfake impersonations – Audio and video of people you trust.
  • Personalized scam messages – Tailored to your vulnerabilities.

It’s more than just older Americans who are vulnerable. After all, even tech-savvy people are at risk for falling prey to these sophisticated scams. I read a report about how scammers are using AI to analyze social media and dark web data to create personalized scam messages. They understand our motivations, our anxieties, and our weaknesses more profoundly than we understand ourselves.

Think Ocean’s Eleven, but played by the best con artist ever, who has spent months researching your life. They're merely biding their time, waiting for the right opportunity to strike.

The cryptocurrency world? Forget about it. The anonymity and lack of oversight have created a breeding ground for fraud. AI-driven trading bots that turn out to be Ponzi schemes, AI-generated fake whitepapers for fraudulent crypto projects… it's the Wild West of scams.

We Must Fight Back Together

So, what can we do? So what, we just give up and admit that we’re all destined to be victims? Absolutely not! We need to fight back.

First, educate yourselves. Get familiar with the tech support scammers’ tactics. Know that Microsoft and Apple will never contact you out of the blue to remedy an issue. Hang up on anyone who requests remote access to your computer or demands payment in cryptocurrency.

Second, talk to your loved ones. Share these stories. Help protect your parents, grandparents and other vulnerable older relatives and family members. Prevention is always better than cure.

Third, hold tech companies and governments accountable. They can and should do more to protect consumers from these scams. We’re smashing up unlicensed replica sites and going after scam call centers. Alongside this, we’re raising public awareness on the dangers of online fraud.

Finally, remember that you are not alone. If you’ve been a victim of a scam, there’s no reason to feel embarrassed about coming forward. It's not your fault. These criminals are highly skilled scam artists, and they are experts at the hustle. By reporting the scam, law enforcement can find criminals and stop them before they hurt other people.

So, the battle to stop tech support scammers is really a battle to keep our digital lives. It’s a battle for faith, for protection, and for the tranquility that every American demands. It's time to take it seriously. Before they take everything from us.