Eddie McGuire has fallen victim to a ‘disgusting’ AI video which used his likeness to trick unsuspecting victims out of their money.
The TV star, 60, lashed out at elaborate scammers this week after they stole his identity to lure people into a fake money scheme with a YoutTube advert.Â
The deepfake clip looked unrecognisable from Eddie and used his voice, adding an American accent, to spruik a financial venture, reported Herald Sun on Monday. Â
‘I’ve been the subject of Facebook scams many times,’ Eddie said.
‘I don’t do advertising for these things and aren’t on any social platforms, so anything with me in it is completely fraudulent.’
Eddie went on to say the scammers appeared to have used vision of him from Today and are likely based in America due to their use of the word ‘math’ instead of ‘maths’.Â
Eddie McGuire, 60, has fallen victim to a ‘disgusting’ AI video which used his likeness to trick unsuspecting victims out of their money
‘Horrible, thieving people preying upon unsuspecting victims while trying to steal my identity—disgraceful and disgusting,’ he added.
In the video, a fake Eddie claimed people who clicked on the advertisement would ‘change their lives’ and start earning $1,000 a day. Â
‘I’ve spent most of my life creating projects that can improve the life of every Australian,’ the former Collingwood president said in the scam.
‘Listen carefully. You can only watch this video once, if you leave this page you won’t be able to come back because your link will expire along with your potential earnings.
‘Try our algorithm for free and change your life.’
Eddie is the latest in a long line of celebrities who have been caught in social media scams looking to fleece Aussies of their hard-earned cash.
Gina Rinehart, Dick Smith, David Koch and Karl Stefanovic have all had their pictures included in fake Facebook images targeting unwitting victims. Â
Most recently, heartless scammers shared false social media articles featuring Sophie Monk and Robert Irwin in a bid to steal money from Aussies.
The TV star lashed out at elaborate scammers this week after they stole his identity to lure people into a fake money scheme with a YoutTube advert
The scam first began appearing online in January with posts on X showing mock news.com.au previews.
Headlines on these articles read: ‘A big scandal. Sophie Monk: I had to tell people the truth, even if it means risking my career.’
When clicked, victims were led to articles designed to look genuine, though hosted under a completely different URL.
The articles claimed British-Australian singer and personality Sophie, 45, had revealed a lucrative investment strategy on the Today show with host Karl.
The article claimed the top brass of ‘Central Bank of Australia’ demanded the segment didn’t go to air, fearing people would ditch their savings accounts if they knew about ‘Ms Monk’s’ strategy.
The article featured several doctored pictures of Sophie explaining the system to Karl, 50, and a fake interview transcript.
Readers were told Sophie provided a link to an investment platform, Intermediate FastX, and were encouraged to leave their cash with the site.
Another scam seen on X involved false articles about Robert, 21, which deceitfully claimed he was being sued by banks for divulging his own investment strategies.
Eddie is the latest in a long line of celebrities who have been caught in social media scams looking to fleece Aussies of their hard-earned cash. Pictured: Sophie MonkÂ
Banks have increasingly pressured the government to toughen penalties for social media companies allowing fake news to circulate on their platforms.
The ACCC believed Australians lost about $35million to investment scams between April and June last year.
Victims who are left out of pocket have very few avenues to chase their cash with scammers usually being overseas and using cryptocurrency to hide their ill-gotten gains.
The ACCC’s ScamWatch last year revealed there had been a rise in the use of celebrities and public figures in fake news and ‘deepfake’ videos to promote fraudulent investment platforms.