Summit County Executive Ilene Shapiro warned residents Wednesday about a dangerous new wave of AI-generated scam calls where fraudsters use voice cloning technology to impersonate family members, particularly children and grandchildren, claiming to be in legal trouble or emergency situations requiring immediate money transfers. The scammers also “spoof” phone numbers to appear as trusted contacts, making their deception more convincing. Shapiro advises residents to follow three simple steps when receiving urgent calls requesting money or personal information: pause, hang up, and directly call the trusted number to verify the information, while also recommending families create a unique “safe word” to verify identity during suspicious calls.
County Executive Shapiro Warns of Uptick in AI-Generated Scam Calls, Urges Caution
