DocumentedDeepfake Financial FraudJuly 9, 2023India

Kerala WhatsApp Video-Call Deepfake Scam (Kozhikode)

P S Radhakrishnan, a former private-sector employee from Kozhikode, received a WhatsApp video call in July 2023 from a stranger using AI-driven face and voice impersonation to appear as a former colleague from Andhra Pradesh. The caller invoked names of mutual former colleagues and asked for INR 40,000 for an emergency hospitalisation, which Radhakrishnan transferred online. Kerala Police explicitly designated this 'India's first AI-based deepfake fraud case'; the mechanism was a face-swapped WhatsApp video call rather than voice cloning.

AI system:Real-time face/voice deepfake on WhatsApp video call

Impact

When the caller requested an additional INR 35,000, Radhakrishnan grew suspicious and confirmed the original colleague had not contacted him. This is documented as Kerala's first publicly reported deepfake video-call fraud and triggered a state-wide cyber-police advisory.

Outcome

Kerala Police Cyber Cell traced the funds to a private bank in Maharashtra; the receiving account was frozen and a portion of the money recovered. The Indian Cybersquad documented the case as a benchmark example of AI-enabled vishing in India.

Sources

  1. Source 1Business Todaywww.businesstoday.in/technology/news/story/whatsapp-video-call-scam-kerala-man-robbed-of-rs-40000-by-stranger-pretending-to-be-former-colleague-390035-2023-07-17
  2. Source 2DNA Indiawww.dnaindia.com/technology/report-kerala-man-loses-rs-40000-in-deepfake-ai-whatsapp-fraud-what-is-it-and-how-to-keep-your-money-safe-scam-3052507
  3. Source 3The National (UAE)www.thenationalnews.com/uae/2023/07/19/deepfake-video-call-pretending-to-be-dubai-friend-used-to-swindle-man-out-of-thousands/
  4. Source 4Business Insider Indiawww.businessinsider.in/tech/news/ai-savvy-scammer-uses-deepfake-video-to-steal-40000-via-whatsapp/articleshow/101849089.cms

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