This deepfake romance scam cost a woman her home and life savings
If you think you’d never fall for an online scam, this story should scare you straight. A woman lost $81,000 and had to sell her and her husband’s home after an AI deepfake convinced her she was in a real relationship. Let’s unpack the story together.
How an AI deepfake of a TV star stole one woman's life savings
Abigail believed she was dating Steve Burton, a longtime star of General Hospital. She had received a direct message on Facebook from someone claiming to be the actor. Having watched the show and knowing his face and voice, she took the bait.
Sharing the ordeal with Fox News’ Kurt CyberGuy Knutsson, Abigail’s daughter, Vivian, explained that Abigail was encouraged to keep the relationship with the supposed Steve Burton secret. By the time she began asking questions, she got stonewalled in ways that seemed completely out of character for her mother. But when she pushed hard enough, Abigail showed her a video message as “proof.” In it, a man who looked and sounded exactly like Steve Burton spoke directly to her, called her “Abigail, my queen,” and reassured her of his love.
Vivian smelled a rat immediately and told her mom, “Mom, this is not real. This is AI.” Alas, money had already changed hands by then. Between gift card requests, transfers, money orders and crypto, the Los Angeles Police Department tallied the confirmed losses at $81,000.
Once Abigail’s liquid funds ran out, fake Steve Burton convinced her to sell her home, convincing her they would buy a beach house together and start a new life. Wrapped in promises of a shared future, she sold her condo, which was worth roughly $550,000, for $350,000.
Had it not been for her daughter’s intervention, Abigail would have sent another $70,000 from the proceeds of the house sale to the scammer.
Vivian contacted the police immediately. However, she was told that most operations like this run overseas and the money trail had gone cold. Abigail and her husband were eventually evicted from the home and are now displaced. The family now relies on a civil dispute of the home sale, in which they try to convince a judge that Abigail was not mentally fit to execute the sale.
The “scamiverse” has gone beyond typo-filled emails and fake princes. Per a McAfee survey, Americans encounter about 14 scams daily on average, a bulk of which are done using deepfakes. However, only 22% of scam victims report to the FBI. Shame keeps the rest silent, and that shame and secrecy is exactly what scammers count on.
