PNB Cautions Customers Against AI Voice Cloning, Deepfake Scams Amidst Rising Cybercrime

Punjab National Bank (PNB) has issued a stern warning to its customers regarding the escalating threat of AI-driven cyber frauds, including sophisticated voice cloning, deepfakes, and phishing. This alert comes as October is observed as National Cyber Security Awareness Month, highlighting the increasing ingenuity of fraudsters.

Ashok Chandra, PNB's MD and CEO, emphasized that these scams often exploit human vulnerabilities such as trust, fear, and urgency. Fraudsters are now mimicking the voices or appearances of family members or trusted individuals to create false emergencies, coercing victims into urgent money transfers. He noted that deceptive emails and messages are becoming highly personalized, making them difficult to distinguish from genuine bank communications and often designed to induce panic for immediate action without verification.

The banking sector, both public and private, is significantly increasing investments in IT and cybersecurity to counter these evolving threats, which include advanced AI and quantum computing risks, alongside stringent regulatory mandates from the Reserve Bank of India.

In a recent incident underscoring this threat, a 70-year-old Pune resident, Dilip Eknath Waikar, was swindled out of Rs 4.81 lakh. He received a WhatsApp message pension card registration, and upon clicking a fraudulent link and entering his bank details, his account was drained. A case has been registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Information Technology Act. Similarly, a 72-year-old retired bank employee in Ahmedabad lost Rs 5 lakh after responding to a ad for a pension card.

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