During the current tax filing season, Americans not only face complexity in the tax payment process, there are also online tax scams using artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
According to McAfee, a leading cybersecurity company, 25% of Americans have fallen victim to online tax scams. Scammers use fake messages from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or state tax authorities to trick recipients into providing sensitive personal information.
More and more criminals are using AI tools to stage fraudulent activities, especially with robocalls. Automated calls use deepfake technology to impersonate extremely realistic voices to deceive the recipient.
Meanwhile, many American citizens are not aware enough about distinguishing sophisticated fraud tricks. It is estimated that only 1/3 of individuals use two-factor authentication when asked about tax season security measures.
In the context of escalating cyber threats, McAfee urges users to proactively protect their personal and financial information, and to be cautious when encountering messages containing content from tax authorities, especially especially those with PDF file attachments.
Mr. Steve Grobman, Chief Technology Officer of McAfee, emphasized the importance of AI security solutions to minimize risks to users. Currently, anxiety during tax season along with the increase in AI fraud is requiring users to increase awareness and seek more effective prevention measures.
