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Straits Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Chatty AI bots put to work in Australia's fight against fraud
When a scammer calls or texts, the AI bots—sophisticated digital decoys—spring into action. PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: PEXELS Scammers targeting people in Australia may soon find themselves talking not to victims but to bots instead. On June 27 , Australia's largest bank Commonwealth Bank of Australia deployed 10,000 artificial intelligence bots to disrupt scam operations, engage scammers in extended conversations, and gather valuable intelligence in real time. When a scammer calls or texts, the multilingual AI chatbots create voice clones that keep fraudsters on lengthy phone calls. During the calls, the bots also extract as much intelligence as possible and feed real-time insights directly into the bank's scam-control systems. 'Scammers are increasingly using AI to target Australians – we're turning the tables by using AI to fight back. Every minute a scammer is engaging with a bot is a minute they're not targeting an Australian,' the bank's group fraud general manager James Roberts said. Developed in partnership with cyber-intelligence firm the initiative is based on a honeypot strategy, which refers to a security mechanism that creates a virtual trap to lure attackers. Professor Dali Kaafar, founder and chief executive of said: 'In the fight against scams, timing is everything. Our intelligence gives organisations like Commonwealth Bank the edge, not just to detect scams, but to anticipate and block it before it reaches customers.' According to data from Australia's National Anti-Scam Centre, phone scams were the most financially damaging form of scams in 2024, with 2,179 victims losing A$107.2 million (S$89.3 million). Text messages were the second most common contact method used by scammers, with investment scams responsible for the highest losses via this channel. Beyond immediate engagement, the bots also help identify emerging scam trends, improve the bank's scam detection capabilities, and support collaborative efforts to shut down scam networks industry-wide. In Singapore, the AI model Meralion screens phone calls and intercepts potentially fraudulent ones, preventing scammers from reaching their intended victims. The Singlish-savvy national AI program, developed by the A*Star Institute for Infocomm Research, is available for the public to install for free. If a call is flagged as suspicious, Meralion answers on behalf of the user, identifies itself as an AI assistant, and prompts the caller to explain the reason for the call. Based on the response, the bot decides whether to connect or block the call entirely. Meralion is also capable of blocking robocalls – automated calls frequently used by scammers to reach large numbers of victims at once. Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Perth Now
3 days ago
- Business
- Perth Now
Big bank's bizarre way to stop scammers
Commonwealth Bank Australia has revealed a new strategy which will be put in place to stop scammers – using artificial intelligence (AI) to trap them in a 'honey pot' strategy. CBA, in partnership with says they are deploying thousands of conversation bots to stop scammers ringing or phoning actual Australians. This fleet of AI-powered bot profiles are engineered to engage with scammers, gather intelligence on them and disrupt scam operations all in near real-time. chief executive and founder Dali Kaafar said the system was based on a 'honey pot' strategy. CBA has announced a new way to stop scammers by having AI chat directly with them 'We've designed our bots to be difficult to detect by scammers, making them incredibly effective at gathering intelligence and disrupting scam operations,' professor Kaafar said. 'The bots are uniquely crafted with diverse identities – varying in gender, age, tone, and cultural nuance – and finetuned with Australian slang and humour to improve realism.' CBA will use AI to chat with scammers directly. NewsWire / Morgan Sette Credit: News Corp Australia Professor Kaafar said in collaboration with our telco partners, operates a vast and constantly growing network of dedicated telephone numbers connected to the telcos networks and designed specifically to be discovered and targeted by scammers. 'When a scammer dials or messages one of these numbers, they actually engage in conversations with one of our AI-powered bots and not a person,' he said. 'In the fight against scams, timing is everything. 'Our intelligence gives organisations like CBA the edge, not just to detect scams, but to anticipate and block it before it reaches customers.' Commonwealth Bank general manager of group fraud James Roberts said while the bank won't share specific methods this collaboration is helping to strengthen the ability to quickly and effectively to evolving threats. CBA has said phone scams accounted for the highest overall financial losses over 2024. NewsWire / Nicholas Eagar Credit: NewsWire 'Since the pilot program was announced late 2024, it has expanded in both scale and sophistication,' Mr Roberts said. 'This has seen hundreds of thousands of scam calls diverted to bots, with intelligence gathered helping to generate near real-time alerts and blocks to protect CommBank customers. It comes as the bank looks to offset some of the financial damages caused by scammers in Australia. CBA says phone scams accounted for the highest overall financial losses in 2024, and were more likely to result in significant losses for an individual. Mr Roberts said every minute a scammer is engaging with a bot, is less time they can be using to target Australians. 'The near real-time intelligence being gathered is a game-changer in how we help to protect our customers and the broader community,' he said.
The Age
3 days ago
- Business
- The Age
CommBank unleashes ‘bot army' with Aussie accents to trap scammers
Listening to Linda Williams complain about her day while talking to a call centre operator as she fumbles around to find her credit card, it sounds like she's falling hook, line and sinker for an obvious scam. The person on the other end of the line, who purports to be from a retailer's fraud department and initially addresses Williams as 'Madam', tells her that suspicious activity has been detected on her account – a Macbook Pro was purchased for $780, to be delivered to a Thailand address. In an alarmed tone, Williams tells the operator that she lives in Sydney and never ordered the computer. The caller then informs Williams she can cancel the order, but that she'll need her credit card details to do so. 'All right gimme a sec, ah, sorry mate, let me try to, I think it's in my wallet, but it's been a crazy day and I'm not even sure I can do things right today,' Williams says. Moments later, she reads out her card details. However, the scammer will never get any money out of her. Williams can't be defrauded, because she doesn't exist. She's an artificial intelligence-powered bot, part of a new army of fake personas with convincing voices and backstories as vulnerable Australians that will go into battle with criminals seeking to swindle people out of their money. Williams' call was just one of what will be roughly 10,000 daily phone calls, and about 2500 text exchanges that the 'bot army' – which is an initiative from Commonwealth Bank and Macquarie University-born artificial intelligence firm – will conduct.
