Scammers used AI to clone her daughter’s voice and fake a kidnapping. A voice expert says every family needs a safe word

Fortune · Muskaan Arshad

Scammers used AI voice cloning to impersonate victims’ relatives and run a fake kidnapping scheme that Del Mastro believed for five hours before wiring money. McAfee tests found that a 3-second audio clip could generate a voice clone with an 85% match. Families are now urged to add a private safe code word and verify emergencies by hanging up and calling the person directly, since voice familiarity is no longer reliable for identity.

Why it matters

A marketing professor who studies voice and persuasion says a familiar voice lowers our defenses. Here’s the simple fix she recommends.