AI Grandma Daisy Will Scam the Phone Scammers For You

Daisy is designed to get back at a thing we all hate, telemarketing scammers who call all day and night trying to trick us into giving all kinds of personal information or money. Most of us have grown accustomed to the rouse and either hang up, express our anger at them, or don’t answer the phone.

A few years ago I got a call from someone who wanted to access my computer because there was an issue. I had time to kill and ended up tagging them along for a long time. Once they realized that I was on to them, they screamed expletives and hung up, which was very satisfying.

Now there’s Daisy to take care of that for all of us. Daisy is a fantastically awesome artificial intelligence grandmother designed to frustrate the tele-scammers by doing the same thing I did, keeping them on the phone for as long as possible.

Daisy was launched in early November 2024 by a phone company in the United Kingdom, Virgin Media O2. She simply wastes a scammer’s time and has kept some of them on the line, preventing them from victimizing others, for over 30 minutes.

We all know that a lot of fraud is aimed at the elderly. That’s why the best artificial victim is an AI chatbot old lady who sounds like everyone's grandmother. Daisy’s creators sampled several hours of recorded conversations with an actual human grandmother to perfect AI Daisy.

AI granny doesn’t block calls, however, she has stored tons of phone numbers that are on telemarketing and scammer lists. According to CBS news, Virgin Media O2 “used a tactic called number seeding to get Daisy's phone number added to a list of online "mugs lists." These are “lists used by scammers targeting U.K. consumers.”

When an old lady chatbot receives a call she may talk about her grandchildren, something happening in her garden, or even share fake account numbers.

According to several reports, this is only the beginning of helping scammers have a long and unsuccessful day. This can lead to making it less desirable to choose this particular specialized scam profession.

According to BusinessWire, more than one in five Americans were scammed out of billions of dollars last year. Let’s hope that Daisy doesn’t retire, and brings on some friends to help.

Scams are a scary thing, so you should know these new scams that are trending. It's easy to think that you could never fall for a scam, but the truth is that scammers are getting better and better and what they're doing, so it's getting more difficult to stay safe.

Before we get into the new scams that are trending, it's worth reminding ourselves of some age-old scams. Some scam artists just keep doing the same thing, and they keep getting successful results. The IRS has some good information out about tax-related scams and how to avoid them. On the agency's official website, they warn that seniors are often targeted in scams. This was true years ago and is still true. On their site, they warn taxpayers not to fall for scams targeting older adults. "Scammers pretending to be government officials, aim to steal sensitive personal information and money," they state. "By posing as representatives from agencies such as the IRS, or other government agencies, these fraudsters use fear and deceit to exploit their victims."

Another big scam that's been around forever is scammers claiming their services are needed to settle with the IRS and "that their debts can be settled for 'pennies-on-the-dollar' or that there is a limited window of time to resolve tax debts through the Offer in Compromise (OIC) program." The IRS says "these promoters are often referred to as 'OIC Mills.'" In a release, the IRS adds that an Offer in Compromise "mill" will "usually make outlandish claims, frequently in radio and TV ads, about how they can settle a person's tax debt for cheap. In reality, the promoter fees are often excessive, and taxpayers pay the OIC mill to get the same deal they could have received on their own by working directly with the IRS. This takes unnecessary money out of the taxpayer's wallet."

"Too often, we see some unscrupulous promoters mislead taxpayers into thinking they can magically get rid of a tax debt," IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said in a statement. "This is a legitimate IRS program, but there are specific requirements for people to qualify. People desperate for help can make a costly mistake if they clearly don't qualify for the program. Before using an aggressive promoter, we encourage people to review readily available IRS resources to help resolve a tax debt on their own without facing hefty fees."

Now, let's move onto the new scams to avoid.

The AARP warns of a new scam called the "check cooking scam." The AARP states, "In check cooking, thieves take a digital picture of a stolen check and then use commercially available software to alter it." It can look super real, but it's fake. So, how do you stay safe? "Consider using a safer payment method, such as a credit card," they suggest.

The AARP states also warns of a new sweepstakes scam where "instead of trying to get you to pay taxes or other fees in advance to collect the nonexistent prize, the scammers will ask for personal information so that they can validate you and set up the payout." Just say no.

These days, AI scams are big. Experian.com says today, scammers use technology to "write more convincing and natural-sounding phishing emails and text messages." They can also "Impersonate the victim's friend or relative and ask for money as part of a grandparent scam." It's scary stuff. Beware of anything that sounds too crazy, as these can often seem far-fetched, but AI makes them look real.

Experian.com says that student loan forgiveness scams are on the rise. They note that, "scammers may contact you via phone or create phony application sites aimed at stealing your Social Security number or your bank account information." Don't give out your information. If it sounds too good to be true, it is.

This one is really wild. With the games on the way, scammers can use the games to scam you. The AARP states, "A scammer hacks someone's email account, and shortly after, all of that person's contacts will receive the same message — something to the effect of, 'Hey guys, I'm over in Paris and my wallet got stolen! Can anyone please help me out by sending gift cards or a Venmo deposit?"

Whether the scam is new or old, the best way to avoid it is to stop and think about what's happening. These scam artists are super good at what they do, but if you just stop for a moment and really think out any actions, you can avoid making a rash decision that could cost you.