Hong Kong authorities have initiated a probe into a significant financial fraud case after an employee, working for an undisclosed company, reported being deceived into transferring HK$200 million (£20 million) to fraudsters during a deepfake video conference call.
The Hong Kong Police Force confirmed that they had received a report from the victim, who fell prey to individuals "posing as senior officers of the company".
According to the police statement, the employee reported the incident on January 29, revealing that the deception occurred through video conference calls where the impersonators convincingly portrayed themselves as high-ranking company officials, directing the transfer of funds to designated bank accounts.
This case underscores the growing threat posed by advanced technologies, such as deepfake technology, which allows cybercriminals to manipulate visual and auditory content to create realistic impersonations.
In this instance, the fraudsters exploited the trust established through video conferencing, leveraging the victim's belief that she was interacting with genuine company leaders.
The Hong Kong police are now working to trace the origin of the fraudulent video conference calls and identify those responsible for orchestrating the sophisticated scam.
The police force stated that, following a preliminary investigation, the case has been categorized as "obtaining property by deception" and is currently under the jurisdiction of the cybercrime unit. As of now, no arrests have been made, and the investigative process is ongoing.
According to RTHK, Hong Kong's public broadcaster, the affected individual is a clerk employed by an undisclosed multinational corporation.
Acting senior superintendent Baron Chan was quoted speculating that the perpetrator potentially employed artificial intelligence to carry out the deception.
Chan explained: "[The fraudster] invited the informant [clerk] to a ..
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