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A 77-year-old retired lecturer from Edinburgh, Nikki MacLeod, has come forward to share her ordeal of falling victim to an elaborate online romance scam involving AI-generated deepfake videos.
The scam, which cost her £17,000, highlights the growing sophistication of cybercriminals leveraging artificial intelligence to manipulate unsuspecting victims.
Speaking during BBC Scotland’s Scam Safe Week, Nikki revealed how loneliness after losing her parents during the COVID-19 lockdown and the end of a long-term relationship led her to online chat groups, where she met a woman known as “Alla Morgan.”
The scammer claimed to be working on an oil rig in the North Sea and used advanced AI technology to create convincing videos and documents.
Nikki, initially sceptical, was persuaded by a series of video messages purportedly showing “Alla Morgan” addressing her directly and claiming she was not a scammer.
The videos, featuring bad weather and oil rig backgrounds, appeared authentic enough to convince Nikki that the woman was real.
“I am not a stupid person, but she was able to convince me we were going to spend our lives together,”Nikki said, recounting how she sent money through gift cards, bank transfers, and PayPal to maintain communication and assist “Alla” with supposed travel arrangements.
The scam unfolded gradually. First, Nikki was asked to purchase Steam gift cards, which the scammer claimed were necessary to maintain an internet connection on the oil rig.
Later, she was presented with fabricated documents and contacted by someone posing as a company HR representative, who requested $2,500 for helicopter travel.
Nikki only realized the truth when her bank flagged a transaction and informed her she was a victim of fraud.
Police Scotland has since launched an investigation into the case.
Nikki is now warning others about the dangers of online scams and the sophisticated tactics employed by criminals.
“I want people to know that this can happen to anyone. AI technology is making scams more convincing than ever,” she said.
