MoneyConsumerDon't Waste Your Money

Actions

Fears grow about AI scams: How concerned should you be?

Artificial intelligence coming to new iPhones, Windows laptops
ChatGPT AI
Posted
and last updated

Apple's newest phone is expected to include a long list of artificial intelligence features.

And while many consumers are embracing these new tools, others have concerns about AI and worry it will make it harder to identify potential scams.

Avoiding it is getting tougher and tougher, as AI is coming to just about everything we use and touch, from the new iPhones to the next generation of laptops (featuring Microsoft's Windows Copilot), and perhaps even your next kitchen appliances.

Consumers have many concerns

If you have mixed feelings about AI, you're not alone.

"It might help out," one woman sitting outside at lunch told us. "Maybe, maybe not. But it's scary!"

Patrick Bolling, also enjoying lunch on a nice September day, says he's uneasy.

"I'm scared to death of it," Bolling said.

Especially in an election year, he said, "you can't trust anything, and you can't believe anything."

A new survey from the company Boss Revolution captures Americans' concerns about AI: 48 percent say they feel less "scam-savvy."

And one in three admit it would be difficult to identify a potential scam, if an AI scammer tried to impersonate someone they know.

"The biggest danger right now is that your average American, still, even if they're afraid of AI, does not know how good this technology has gotten," said Mike Kaput of the Marketing AI Institute.

He has a caution for consumers.

"I can tell you to keep your eyes open and remain aware," Kaput said, "but you can still get fooled very easily."

Worries about financial scams

In the survey, the majority of respondents (69 percent) believe AI will have a major impact on financial scams.

AI helps scammers come up with much more convincing emails and text messages, according to Zulfikar Ramzan with the software company Aura.

"Nowadays, we're seeing more and more messages with impeccable grammar, no errors. Everything looks copacetic," Ramzan said.

Kaput admits AI does have risks, but insists it's not all doom and gloom.

"Despite the scary parts of it, there's so many ways where it can vastly improve your daily life or the work that you do," Kaput said.

Boss Revolution's survey finds 38 percent of people are likely to use AI for everyday tasks.

Best Buy's Seph Swaenepoel agrees, telling us there's no need to be scared of the AI on the newest Windows laptops, for instance.

"Everybody could benefit from having an assistant, essentially," he said.

That way you're using AI for good, and you don't waste your money.

_______________________________________

"Don't Waste Your Money" is a registered trademark of Scripps Media, Inc. ("Scripps").

Follow John:

For more consumer news and money saving advice, go to www.dontwasteyourmoney.com

Don't Waste Your Money promo

Your source for deals, product reviews and consumer news.

Have a problem?
Send us an email, at jmatarese@wcpo.com or Taylor.Nimmo@wcpo.com or message John on Facebook and Taylor on Facebook.