Scammers using AI-generated images of missing pets to demand reward money
Scammers are increasingly using AI-generated images of missing pets to deceive owners into paying fake rewards. Victims are often subjected to emotional abuse and threats if they refuse to pay or question the authenticity of the images.
Why it matters
This highlights the growing trend of using generative AI to weaponize emotional distress for financial fraud.
Image caption, Stephanie Young said she was shocked anyone could be "so evil" after receiving threats to murder her cat, Buddy
When Stephanie Young's cat Buddy went missing from her garden in September last year, she flooded pet rescue sites and social media groups with information about him.
Her hopes were raised when an image of him was sent through by a woman named Melissa, who claimed to have fed her cat and wanted reward money for her autistic grandchildren.
The foster carer from Birmingham was "100% certain" she had found her cat and remembered thinking Buddy had picked a lovely garden to sit in as she got money out of the bank to pay for his return.
Within hours, she had agreed to meet Melissa nearby to collect him, but the individual never turned up, refused a cash payment and pushed for 100 Apple gift cards as a reward.
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