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Cypriot authorities reported that scammers used AI-generated deepfake videos to impersonate President Nicos Christodoulides and other high-profile figures to promote fraudulent investment schemes. Approximately 15 citizens were defrauded of significant sums, ranging from €10,000 to €15,000 each. Officials from the Digital Security Authority noted that current detection tools are insufficient and warned that the sophistication of AI-driven social engineering is rapidly increasing.
Around December 2025, Cypriot authorities reported that scammers used a purportedly AI-generated deepfake video impersonating President Nicos Christodoulides and other officials to promote a fraudulent investment platform. The video deceived about 15 citizens, who each lost between €10,000 and €15,000. Officials warned that malicious AI impersonation schemes are increasing and that citizens currently lack effective protection.
Domain classification, causal taxonomy, severity scores, and national security assessments were LLM-classified and may contain errors.
Using AI systems to gain a personal advantage over others such as through cheating, fraud, scams, blackmail or targeted manipulation of beliefs or behavior. Examples include AI-facilitated plagiarism for research or education, impersonating a trusted or fake individual for illegitimate financial benefit, or creating humiliating or sexual imagery.
Also classified as
The deepfake videos generated and spread false information, leading victims to believe they were investing in legitimate platforms endorsed by public figures.
The incident involves malicious actors using AI-generated deepfakes to conduct targeted financial fraud and scams against specific victims for personal gain.
Human
Due to a decision or action made by humans
Intentional
Due to an expected outcome from pursuing a goal
Post-deployment
Occurring after the AI model has been trained and deployed
The incident was caused by human scammers who intentionally created and deployed deepfake videos post-deployment to defraud citizens.
Added categories peak at 3: Substantial (Epistemic Harm, Inferred)
Scammers used AI-generated deepfakes of the Cypriot President and other high-profile figures to conduct financial fraud, stealing up to 225,000 euros from citizens. While the incident demonstrates the evolving threat of synthetic media for social engineering, its national security impact remains minor as it did not target critical infrastructure, state sovereignty, or broader economic stability.
The report describes scammers using AI tools to generate deepfake videos and voices to impersonate high-profile figures for financial fraud.
Risk Level 3: Limited Risk. The report describes the creation and dissemination of deepfakes, which are subject to transparency and labeling obligations under the EU AI Act.
The AI systems were used to generate highly realistic deepfake videos and synthetic voices of public figures to deceive victims.
The report clearly details the nature of the scams, the victims, the financial losses, and the specific public figures impersonated. While the exact AI models used are not specified, the description of the deepfakes and their impact is unambiguous.
None.
Technology
Advanced Deepfake Generation
AI models can generate highly realistic videos and voices of public figures.
Lack of Detection Tools
Even experts lack tools or mechanisms to detect sophisticated AI content.
Accessible Malicious AI Tools
Scammers can easily pay subscriptions to acquire powerful AI tools.
Data Inputs
Public Media of Figures
Abundant public video and audio of politicians are used to train deepfakes.
Human Factors
Limited Public Awareness
Citizens struggle to identify subtle visual errors like hand anomalies.
Susceptibility to Manipulation
Social engineering exploits trust in high-profile figures.
Process and Methods
Lack of Verification
Victims fail to call back or verify information before sending money.
Inadequate Platform Filtering
Social media platforms lack automatic filtering for scam deepfakes.
Regulatory Environment
Legislative Gaps
Current laws do not criminalize unauthorized AI use of people's likeness.
No Mandatory AI Labeling
There are no enforced requirements for platforms to label AI-generated media.
AI system involved
An AI system was involved, but the reports do not identify it.
Identified by automated extraction; can differ from the alleged developers above.
