Israeli Man Uses AI to Impersonate Victims and Fraudulently Obtain Credit Cards
A 20-year-old Israeli man has been indicted for using artificial intelligence to impersonate dozens of victims and fraudulently issue credit cards in their names. According to police, the suspect animated photos from identity cards with AI to create fake verification videos, which he used to bypass remote identification processes required by credit companies. He then issued dozens of credit cards linked to bank accounts of public organizations and charities, without the knowledge of either the identity owners or the account holders.
The suspect conducted transactions totaling tens of thousands of shekels, including systematically renting vehicles abroad, notably from a company in Cyprus. This led to an international investigation with Israeli police requesting assistance from Cypriot authorities. He also attempted to secure loans worth hundreds of thousands of shekels, but credit companies detected and blocked these attempts before significant damage occurred.
Police investigations revealed the suspect obtained access to a leaked database containing identity card images of dozens of citizens, likely acquired or found online. He also used the stolen identities to activate over ten phone lines, once even taking control of a victim’s phone number for four days without their knowledge. The suspect was held in custody for nearly a month and remains detained pending further proceedings.
Authorities warn the public against clicking on links or sharing one-time codes received via SMS unless the action was personally initiated, as criminals increasingly use sophisticated methods to impersonate trusted organizations. Police emphasize that even messages appearing in legitimate message threads can be fake. They urge vigilance and cooperation with regulatory bodies to close security gaps, noting that technology evolves faster than legislation, making prevention challenging.
The police continue to investigate and work with communication and banking regulators to propose legislative changes aimed at reducing fraud risks and protecting citizens from such AI-enabled scams.
