A British company has launched an ‘AI granny’, designed to trick scammers into thinking they’ve found the perfect victim and waste their time by keeping them on the phone – preventing them from targeting others.
Lifelike granny ‘Daisy’ is inspired by the practice of “scambaiting”, where people pose as potential victims to waste scammers’ time and resources, publicly expose them and gather information for law enforcement.
O2 claims that by convincing fraudsters they are deceiving a real person, Daisy has successfully diverted their attention from genuine victims, using her ability to answer calls in real time just like a human.
A video released by the phone service provider has shown scammers becoming increasingly frustrated with Daisy as she rambles about imaginary cat ‘Fluffy’ and goes on long tangents about extended family members.
Reality star Amy Hart is working with Daisy to get revenge on scammers after falling victim to a scam which drained £5,000 from her bank account in minutes earlier this month.
She said: “I know first-hand just how sophisticated nasty fraudsters can be, that’s why I’ve teamed up with O2 to take the fight back to them, keeping them busy with calls going nowhere.”
Scambaiter Daisy was created after research found that 7 in 10 Brits want to retaliate against scammers who have targeted them or their loved ones
Although half of those polled said they don’t have the energy or patience to push back against the criminals.
Murray MacKenzie, director of fraud at O2, said: “We’re committed to playing our part in stopping the scammers, investing in everything from firewall technology to block out scam texts to AI-powered spam call detection to keep our customers safe.
“The newest member of our fraud-prevention team, Daisy, is turning the tables on scammers – outsmarting and outmanoeuvring them at their own cruel game simply by keeping them on the line.
“But crucially, Daisy is also a reminder that no matter how persuasive someone on the other end of the phone may be, they aren’t always who you think they are.”
Have you lost money to a scam? Contact National Fraud Helpline. Call 0333 0033218 or fill out our Claim Form.