Gmail account users have been hit by fraudsters using hyper-realistic AI technology.
The scam emails asks recipients to approve an account recovery attempt and they later receive a call from someone puporting to be from Google which runs Gmail.
The message states that a login attempt or password change needs to be verified.
Microsoft solutions consultant Sam Mitrovic revealed he had been targeted with suspicious messages in a blog post, issuing a warning to others.
He ignored the initial email, but a week later was hit with another notification saying he needed to verify an account recovery and received a phone call which he picked up.
An American voice on the end of the phone, said to be from a Google employee, seemed to confirm that there had been suspicious activity on his account.
The voice asked Mitrovic if he had been travelling, suggesting that someone from Germany had accessed his account and started to download data from it.
After Googling the number that called him, he found that it led to legitimate Google business pages.
Mitrovic realised the call was a scam when he noticed the voice’s AI-like tone, however, he did not immediately sense this.
Forbes has also reported that Google forms are being used by criminals to make documents which are attached to emails to increase reliability.
Google has now launched a new anti-scam programme, “The Global Sign Exchange”, which will act as a global intelligence sharing platform, providing real time insight into the cybercrime supply chain.
Martin Richardon, Senior Partner at National Fraud Helpline, said noone from Google will call you so this should be a red flag that you may be at risk of a scam.
He added: “One of the fraudsters key tools is trying to cuase panic and rush you into a decision.
“They try to induce fear to get you to act in a way that you wouldn’t normally.”