Scammers clone teenager's voice, threaten kidnapping 

Scammers used AI technology to clone the vice of a 15-year-old, claim she had been kidnapped and demand a ransom of USD 1 million for her safe return. 

Arizona resident Jennifer DeStefano received a call from a man who claimed to have her 15-year-old daughter Briana. The caller played a recording of Briana's voice, sobbing and pleading for help, which led DeStefano to believe that her daughter was in danger. 

The scammer threatened violence if she contacted authorities and initially demanded a ransom of USD 1 million, later reducing it to USD 50,000 in cash. 

DeStafano said she had been '100 percent' convinced that Brie was sobbing on the line after she had heard her voice in the background of the call begging her mother to help, and only realised it was a scam when a friend caller her husband to confirm that Brie was safe.

With deepfake voice cloning technologies widely available on the internet, often for free, voice fraud has risen fast.