WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) issued a stark warning on March 19, 2025, about the escalating use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) by fraudsters to prey on unsuspecting investors. The advisory, released by the CFTC’s Office of Customer Education and Outreach (OCEO), details how criminals are leveraging AI to create increasingly sophisticated scams.
According to the OCEO, fraudsters are employing AI to fabricate convincing fake images, voices, videos, and even entire online personas. These tools are being used to construct deceptive social media profiles and malicious websites mimicking legitimate financial trading platforms. A key tactic involves generating fraudulent identifications complete with phony photos and videos that can be difficult to distinguish from reality, particularly for those unfamiliar with the capabilities of AI.
“Fraudsters can use new technologies to mask their identities, not only in still photographs, say, in social media profiles, but also in video chats that alter their facial features and voices to match,” explained Melanie Devoe, Director of the OCEO. “Identifying real from fake can be difficult. The best defense is to never give money to people you only meet online.”
The CFTC advisory highlights the growing prevalence of relationship investment scams where fraudsters build trust with victims online before convincing them to invest in fraudulent schemes. The FBI has also issued a public service announcement echoing these concerns, warning of the use of AI in similar types of fraud.
The OCEO recommends individuals strengthen their social media privacy settings and exercise extreme caution when sharing personal or sensitive information online. Specifically, they advise against providing any financial details to individuals met solely online or contacted via unfamiliar phone numbers. The CFTC encourages citizens to utilize resources available at cftc.gov/LearnAndProtect to further educate themselves on fraud prevention techniques. The advisory underscores the CFTC’s commitment to protecting investors from violations of the Commodity Exchange Act.
While the advisory doesn’t detail specific prosecutions, it signals a heightened awareness within the CFTC regarding the evolving threat landscape presented by AI-powered fraud. The agency is actively working with federal and state regulators, as well as consumer protection groups, to combat these schemes.
Source: CFTC.gov
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