Deepfakes fuel election deception and consumer scams

AI-generated images, videos and audio are making impersonation scams and political disinformation easier to deploy at scale, security experts warn. Doppel, a social engineering defense platform, said only 8% of people in a test recognized that an AI agent was calling them, while 92% believed they were speaking to a human.

As of mid-October, political campaigns had spent more than $137 million on at least 220 AI-generated ads, some featuring candidate deepfakes, according to the Wesleyan Media Project. The group identified less than $50,000 in spending on AI-generated ads in the 2024 cycle. Most creators do not disclose AI use. A manipulated video targeting Texas Senate candidate James Talarico purported to show a former student accusing him of sexual misconduct, according to PolitiFact.

Identity verification company Veriff reported a 300% increase in deepfake-related fraud attempts against businesses this year compared with 2025. In a company test, 70% of participants mistook a deepfake video of a female character for genuine footage. Visual cues such as unnatural skin, hair or teeth are becoming less reliable as generated content improves.

Experts recommend independently verifying suspicious requests for money by calling a known contact number or using another communication channel. They also warn that widespread skepticism can undermine authentic evidence, leaving people uncertain about legitimate images and donation requests.