Latest news with #PoliceUK
Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Molly-Mae Hague warns fans of deepfake perfume ad as she's targeted by AI scam
Molly-Mae Hague has said she had "never even smelt" the perfume that the deepfake advert claims is her favourite - as the 26-year-old laments the "scary" use of deep-fake clips Molly-Mae Hague has warned fans about the dangers of artificial intelligence after a fake video of her promoting a perfume went viral. The influencer and businesswoman, 26, shared a video online discussing a fan interaction that left her shaken up over the use of the technology. She said: 'Yesterday while I was in London, a girl came up to me and she was like oh I've just bought my best friend the perfume you love, for her birthday.' The girl told Molly-Mae that she had bought 'that Nyla one from TikTok '. The former Love Island star said: 'I was gobsmacked, I was like 'that's AI.'' Molly-Mae's sister, Zoe Rae, said: 'I thought it was a clip from an old YouTube video that they've used.' However, Molly-Mae continued on to say: 'There's this clip going around on TikTok, they do it with loads of different people, they'll literally put AI over the clip and be like 'this is Molly's favourite perfume' and it's me saying 'oh I love this Nyla perfume' in my literal voice but it's AI, how scary.' She told fans: 'People are actually buying this perfume thinking that it's my favourite perfume, and I've never even smelt it.' Molly-Mae is not the first celebrity to be the victim of deep-fake videos - with stars like Tom Hanks, Scarlett Johansson, Nigella Lawson, and even Martin Lewis warning against the damaging effects of this technology. A deepfake is described as a video or sound recording that replaces a person's face or voice with that of someone else. They can be incredibly realistic, and used to sell products or services online. Police UK says that some deepfake content can take on the 'exact likeness of a real person'. While they aren't always harmful or illegal, it says that they are 'sometimes used for malicious and criminal purposes". For more stories like this subscribe to our weekly newsletter, The Weekly Gulp, for a curated roundup of trending stories, poignant interviews, and viral lifestyle picks from The Mirror's Audience U35 team delivered straight to your inbox. The comment section on a clip of Molly-Mae's video was divided, with one person writing: 'If people are gullible enough to believe that Molly-Mae or any other celeb wears some cheap TikTok shop perfume then that's on them.' Another said: 'It's very obvious lol. I've seen the same thing about different influencers and different perfumes on TikTok.' However, others explained that they were victims of the fake advert. One person said: 'I didn't even realise it was AI until now.' Someone else posted: 'Omg I feel for this too! I bought it!' A third commented: 'Ahhh man why am I seeing this after I've already bought it.' The Advertising Standards Agency revealed earlier this year that it received 1,691 reports of potential scams in 2024. Celebrity scams were the biggest trend, it said, as they made up the 'vast majority of Scam Ad Alerts' sent last year. It warned: 'The public interest in celebs and other public figures means scammers continue to turn to them to promote cryptocurrency, investment, keto slimming gummies and the like.' If you see an online advert featuring a celebrity, you should do some checks before handing over your details or buying the product. The ASA says: 'Check if they are posting from their official account and consider if the ad seems out of character. While some celebrities do endorse products, they don't usually promote complex investments or wonder cures."
Yahoo
06-04-2025
- Yahoo
Gangs dragging youngsters into knife crime, says MP
An MP has welcomed extra police funding to tackle organised crime gangs which she says are dragging young people in her town into knife crime. Rachel Hopkins, MP for Luton South and South Bedfordshire, was speaking as new figures show violent crime makes up almost a third of all incidents reported in the town, and a local teacher told the BBC that based on statistics "a knife incident could happen in any school". The government has given an extra £7.3m to Bedfordshire Police to help the force tackle violent and organised crime. Meanwhile, a charity that works with pupils in Luton's schools says its preventative work is making a difference. According to Police UK there were 225 crimes reported in Luton in February. Some 72 of them were recorded as violent or sexual crimes and it is another statistic that shows the challenges facing the town. In January, Bedfordshire was ranked eighth in the country for the number of knife offences by the Office for National Statistics. Last year the county played host to a visit by the Knife Angel, a sculpture built from 100,000 seized blades, which led to the recovery of more than 1,500 knives and weapons in the county. The Att10tive charity has hosted over 100 knife crime workshops and the BBC Politics East programme joined them for a visit to the Chalk Hills Academy. A former pupil, Azaan Kaleem, was fatally stabbed in Luton in March 2018 with two teenagers jailed for his murder. "What people see is the very top of the iceberg, they don't see 95% of work that goes on to reduce it," said Montell Neufville from the charity. "There might be something that happens tomorrow or next week, but you probably won't hear that 10 times more [attacks] did not happen because of the work that goes on every day." But teachers said the threat of knife violence was always present. Michael Taylor said: "Colleagues in our pastoral team have seen an increase in the prevalence of gangs and knife crime and it only seems to be getting bigger and bigger. "If you look at the demographics of Luton and the number of incidents that are happening then a knife incident could happen in any school." However pupils at the academy said they felt safe in Luton. Katie said she heard of "some gang activity" but was not sure if that was just "the news picking out stories that are interesting". Mikhael said he felt "quite safe" as there were "not as much gangs here, compared to London". Anthony said he was worried about gangs near where he lived, but said his Mum had "warned me and told me what I should and should not do". The Wingman Mentors, who are funded by the Bedfordshire Violence and Exploitation Reduction Unit (Veru), have set themselves the target of getting more than 200 bleed kits in locations across the town. One of them, Simon Philbert, said: "One of the frustrations I have is seeing a lot of young people with man bags, and they have other paraphernalia in the bags. "If one of them had a bleed kit in there, it could prevent a fatality. "For me they are a lifesaver. It is not just about the kits, but also the awareness." Hopkins welcomed the award of an extra £7.3m to Bedfordshire police which she said would ensure continued support for frontline operations including tackling serious and organised crime and targeting gangs, gun crime and youth violence in hotspot areas. "We are too aware that there is significant and organised crime in Luton which exploits young people and that's why young people get drawn into knife crime," she said. She said she was also lobbying for Bedfordshire Police to get a better deal under the police funding formula. Maria Lovell, a Labour member of Luton Council and a former mayor, said she felt the town was safe. "There is a lot of immense work going on within our community," she said. "We are working with everybody and we will all be in it together as long as we have to, and we are not giving up." Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. Group hopes bleed-kit project will save lives Knife Angel memorial to young victims arrives Two men seriously hurt after town centre stabbing ONS: Police force data tables Bedfordshire Violence and Exploitation Reduction Unit Att10tive Wingman Mentors
BBC News
06-04-2025
- BBC News
Luton MP welcomes police funding to tackle gang and knife crime
An MP has welcomed extra police funding to tackle organised crime gangs which she says are dragging young people in her town into knife Hopkins, MP for Luton South and South Bedfordshire, was speaking as new figures show violent crime makes up almost a third of all incidents reported in the town, and a local teacher told the BBC that based on statistics "a knife incident could happen in any school".The government has given an extra £7.3m to Bedfordshire Police to help the force tackle violent and organised a charity that works with pupils in Luton's schools says its preventative work is making a difference. According to Police UK there were 225 crimes reported in Luton in February. Some 72 of them were recorded as violent or sexual crimes and it is another statistic that shows the challenges facing the January, Bedfordshire was ranked eighth in the country for the number of knife offences by the Office for National year the county played host to a visit by the Knife Angel, a sculpture built from 100,000 seized blades, which led to the recovery of more than 1,500 knives and weapons in the county. The Att10tive charity has hosted over 100 knife crime workshops and the BBC Politics East programme joined them for a visit to the Chalk Hills Academy.A former pupil, Azaan Kaleem, was fatally stabbed in Luton in March 2018 with two teenagers jailed for his murder."What people see is the very top of the iceberg, they don't see 95% of work that goes on to reduce it," said Montell Neufville from the charity."There might be something that happens tomorrow or next week, but you probably won't hear that 10 times more [attacks] did not happen because of the work that goes on every day."But teachers said the threat of knife violence was always Taylor said: "Colleagues in our pastoral team have seen an increase in the prevalence of gangs and knife crime and it only seems to be getting bigger and bigger."If you look at the demographics of Luton and the number of incidents that are happening then a knife incident could happen in any school." However pupils at the academy said they felt safe in said she heard of "some gang activity" but was not sure if that was just "the news picking out stories that are interesting".Mikhael said he felt "quite safe" as there were "not as much gangs here, compared to London".Anthony said he was worried about gangs near where he lived, but said his Mum had "warned me and told me what I should and should not do". The Wingman Mentors, who are funded by the Bedfordshire Violence and Exploitation Reduction Unit (Veru), have set themselves the target of getting more than 200 bleed kits in locations across the of them, Simon Philbert, said: "One of the frustrations I have is seeing a lot of young people with man bags, and they have other paraphernalia in the bags."If one of them had a bleed kit in there, it could prevent a fatality."For me they are a lifesaver. It is not just about the kits, but also the awareness." Hopkins welcomed the award of an extra £7.3m to Bedfordshire police which she said would ensure continued support for frontline operations including tackling serious and organised crime and targeting gangs, gun crime and youth violence in hotspot areas."We are too aware that there is significant and organised crime in Luton which exploits young people and that's why young people get drawn into knife crime," she said she was also lobbying for Bedfordshire Police to get a better deal under the police funding Lovell, a Labour member of Luton Council and a former mayor, said she felt the town was safe."There is a lot of immense work going on within our community," she said."We are working with everybody and we will all be in it together as long as we have to, and we are not giving up." Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
