Tag Archive for: ears

I’m a security expert – Android, iPhone users warned they ‘can’t trust their ears’ as eerie AI call raids bank accounts


CYBERSECURITY experts have warned billions of Android and iPhone users that they might not be able to trust their own ears from scammers looking to raid their banks. 

As artificial intelligence continues to develop, cybersecurity and anti-virus software provider Kaspersky Lab is warning people of scammers using deep-fake technology in phone calls. 

Cybersecurity experts are warning smartphone users of scammers using voice deepfakesCredit: Getty
The scams use fake audio recordings in an attempt to steal money and personal dataCredit: Getty
The technology compresses two recordings togetherCredit: Niral Shah/Stanford/K. Qian, Y. Zhang, S. Chang, et al

Also known as voice cloning or voice conversion, the cyber security company highlighted voice deep fakes in a recent blog post. 

According to the company, this technology is based on autoencoders, which compresses input data into a compact internal representation before learning to decompress it back, restoring the original data. 

In other words, the AI program will first be given data such as two audio recordings – one with the original audio and words, and the other with the voice it wants to use instead. 

Next, the system determines what was said in the first recording and how the voice in the second recording speaks – such as various inflections or accents. 

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Then, the system will combine these two compressed representations together to then generate the voice in the second recording saying the words from the first. 

While this technology might seem harmless to some – or the foundations of a good prank – it can be very dangerous when put in the wrong hands. 

Kaspersky Lab detailed that scammers have been using this technology for years to target companies and individuals worldwide. 

In 2019, for example, criminals used AI software to create fraudulent money transfer requests supposedly from the chief executive officers of an energy firm in the United Kingdom. 

Not only did the scammers use the technology to make the initial request over the phone, they also falsified two additional phone calls to confirm the first transfer and request a second. 

Because the AI program had used a…

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Prick up your ears! There’s a new biometric in town

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Boffins at NEC say that they have developed a biometric technology that can surreptitiously identify individuals by differences in their ears.

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Security systems using ears instead of fingerprints – Examiner

Mark Nixon, a computer scientist at the University of Southampton … It is meant to be used in addition to fingerprints and facial recognition software in an attempt to improve security in places were security is important, such as airports.
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