Deepfake Video Call Scams: How to Spot a Deepfake Live

Quick answer

A deepfake video call uses AI to put a fake face or voice on a live call, often to pose as a romantic match, a boss or an official. To test it, ask the person to turn their head fully sideways, wave a hand across their face, and answer a question only the real person would know. Then verify outside the call: hang up and call back on a number you already have, or ask for a code word. Never send money because of a video call alone.

Key numbers

$893 millionlost across 22,364 complaints to the FBI in 2025 that involved artificial intelligenceFBI IC3 2025 Internet Crime Report
$25 millionsent by an Arup employee in Hong Kong after a video call where the CFO and colleagues were deepfakesCNN, May 2024
$46 milliontaken by a Hong Kong romance ring that used face-swapping deepfakes on video calls; 27 people arrestedThe Record, October 2024
£39.2 millionlost to romance scams in the UK in 2025, up 23%, across 6,335 casesUK Finance Annual Fraud Report 2026

For years, the standard advice for dating safely online was simple: get them on a video call. If they refuse, it's probably a scam. That advice is now incomplete. Criminals can put a different face and voice on a live call, in real time, and they are using it in romance scams, fake job interviews and fraud against companies.

The money is real. In 2025, complaints to the FBI that involved AI reported $893 million in losses across 22,364 complaints. The good news: live deepfakes still break under simple tests, and a few habits make them useless even when they look perfect.

Can scammers fake a video call?

Yes. Scammers can use face-swapping and voice-cloning tools to appear as someone else on a live video call, and the FBI has warned that criminals generate video for "real time video chats" with supposed company executives, law enforcement and romantic contacts.

The FBI's December 2024 alert on generative AI fraud listed three video uses: live chats posing as executives or authority figures, private videos to "prove" an online contact is a real person, and fake promotional videos for investment schemes. Voice cloning is used to impersonate a relative in a crisis, or to get into bank accounts by sounding like the account holder.

What are real examples of deepfake video call scams?

The best-known cases come from business, but romance scammers use the same tools. Here are cases confirmed by police or the company involved.

Arup, Hong Kong (early 2024): a finance worker at the engineering firm sent HK$200 million, about US$25 million, in 15 transfers after a video meeting with the company's "CFO" and other staff. Every one of them was a deepfake. He had suspected the original email was phishing, then dropped his doubts because the people on the call looked and sounded like colleagues, CNN reported.
Hong Kong romance ring (October 2024): police arrested 27 people over a scam that took about $46 million. When victims asked for a video call, the gang used deepfakes to appear as attractive women, then steered victims into fake crypto trading platforms, The Record reported.
Ferrari (July 2024): an executive got WhatsApp messages and then a call from a cloned voice of CEO Benedetto Vigna. He noticed odd intonation and asked which book Vigna had recommended days earlier. The caller hung up, Fortune reported.
Senior US officials (2025 to 2026): the FBI warned in May 2025 and again in December 2025 that criminals send AI-generated voice messages posing as senior officials, then move targets to Signal, Telegram or WhatsApp to ask for money, documents or login codes.
Fake FBI videos (July 2026): the FBI warned of deepfake videos of a senior FBI leader used to push scam victims to a fake complaint site, so they can be robbed twice.

How do deepfake romance scams work?

Deepfake romance scams use AI to pass the one test daters rely on most: the video call. The scammer builds a relationship by text, agrees to a short video chat with a borrowed or generated face, and uses that call as proof they're real before asking for money or pushing a crypto "investment."

The calls are usually short, at night, from a "bad connection" or a "work site." Banks are seeing the trend too: in the UK, romance scam losses rose 23% to £39.2 million in 2025, according to UK Finance. If your match passed a video call but now needs money, gift cards or crypto, treat the call as worth nothing and read the romance scam warning signs.

How do you spot a deepfake on a live video call?

Spot a live deepfake by making the person do things the software handles badly: turn sideways, put a hand in front of the face, move an object, and answer something only the real person knows. Most real-time face swaps are built from front-facing photos, so they warp, flicker or slip when the head turns or something crosses the face.

Tests to ask for

The side profile. "Can you turn your head all the way to the side for a second?" Watch the jawline, ears and hairline.
The hand wave. "Wave your hand slowly in front of your face." Fingers may blur, vanish or pass through the face.
The object test. Ask them to hold up a cup, a pen or today's receipt, or to touch their nose or cover one eye.
The room test. "Show me what's behind you." Flat, static or looping backgrounds are a warning sign.
The memory question. Ask something that's in your private history and not online, like Ferrari's book question.
The screen share (work calls). Ask them to share their screen and open a specific file they should have. That's very hard to fake.

Signs of a fake face or voice

Blurring or flickering at the hairline, ears or jaw, especially when they move.
Lips slightly out of sync with the words, frozen smiles, odd blinking.
Shadows and lighting that don't match the room.
A voice that's flat, oddly smooth, has no breaths, or has small lags on a call.
Missing speech habits: the real person's accent, slang or pet phrases aren't there.
They insist the camera is broken, the connection is bad, or the call must stay very short.

These tests catch many fakes, not all. The tools keep improving. Treat a passed test as "maybe real," never as permission to send money.

How do you verify someone is real outside the call?

Verify outside the call, because a deepfake controls everything inside it. The two habits that beat almost every version of this scam are the call-back and the code word.

Call back on a known number. Hang up and call the person on a number you already had, or one from an official website. The FBI gives this advice in every AI alert.
Use a code word. Agree on a family or team word in advance and ask for it when a request is urgent. The FBI also recommends a secret word or phrase with family.
Check the identity behind the face. For a dating match, confirm the name, job and city match a real person. Our guide on how to verify someone from a dating app walks through it, and you can run a reverse image search on their photos yourself with Google Lens or TinEye.
Slow money down. At work, any payment change or urgent transfer needs a second person and a call-back. At home, wait 24 hours and talk to someone you trust.

A Search A-Z dating match search checks whether the name, job and city your match gave you belong to a real person, and how sure we are it's the same person. It also checks whether the phone number is real, whether it's a mobile or an internet (VoIP) number, and whether the email or number carries fraud risk. It never shows a home address, only the city, and your match is never told you searched. You can also add up to 3 photos from their profile, and we reverse search them to show where else they appear online. For matches in the US, we also check the public sex offender registry.

What should my family or team agree on now?

Agree on rules before anyone gets the call, because people under pressure follow habits, not advice. Write them down.

Situation	Rule
Family member in trouble asks for money	Ask for the code word, then call back on their usual number
Boss or CFO asks for an urgent transfer on video	Call back on the directory number; second approver required
New supplier bank details	Confirm by phone using a number from an old invoice or contract
Dating match "proves" they're real on video, then needs money	No money, gift cards or crypto to anyone you haven't met in person
Official, agent or police officer on a video call	Hang up; contact the agency through its official website

Cutting what scammers can copy also helps. The FBI suggests keeping social accounts private and limiting public videos and voice clips where you can.

What should I do if I think I'm on a deepfake call?

End the call politely and contact the person through a channel you already trust. You don't need to prove it's a fake first. A real friend, partner or boss will understand a two-minute check.

"Sorry, my connection is dropping. I'll call you back on your usual number."

Don't send anything. No money, gift cards, crypto, ID documents or one-time codes.
Save evidence. Screenshots of the profile and chat, the number or account name, dates and amounts.
If you've paid, call your bank now. Ask them to stop or recall the payment. Speed matters most in the first hours.
Report it. US: ic3.gov and reportfraud.ftc.gov. Type ic3.gov yourself: the FBI warns of fake IC3 sites and says the real IC3 never contacts you or charges fees. UK: Report Fraud (0300 123 2040) in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, or Police Scotland on 101. EU: your national police cybercrime reporting site, listed on Europol's reporting page.
Report the profile. Use the dating app's or platform's report button so they can remove the account.
Watch for recovery scams. Anyone who contacts you offering to get your money back for a fee is almost certainly a second scam.

The bottom line

A video call is no longer proof that someone is real. Use the live tests to catch the clumsy fakes, but rely on what a deepfake can't control: a call-back to a number you already have, a code word, and a firm rule that nobody gets money because of a call alone.

Frequently asked questions

Can a deepfake be used on a live video call?

Yes. Real-time face-swapping and voice-cloning tools can change how someone looks and sounds during a live call. The FBI has warned that criminals use AI video in live chats posing as executives, officials and romantic contacts.

What is the fastest way to test for a deepfake?

Ask the person to turn their head fully to the side and wave a hand slowly in front of their face. Many real-time deepfakes warp or flicker. Then ask a question only the real person could answer.

Can a deepfake fake a voice on a phone call?

Yes. AI voice cloning can copy someone's voice from recordings. Listen for flat tone, missing breaths and odd pauses, but the safest check is to hang up and call back on a number you already have, or ask for a code word.

My dating match video called me. Does that mean they're real?

Not on its own. Deepfake romance rings have passed video calls. Check that their name, job and city match a real person, and never send money to someone you haven't met in person. See how to verify a dating match.

What is a family code word?

A word or phrase your family agrees on in advance and never posts online. If someone calls claiming to be a relative in an emergency, ask for it. The FBI recommends this in its AI fraud warnings.

Where do I report a deepfake scam?

US: ic3.gov and reportfraud.ftc.gov. UK: Report Fraud on 0300 123 2040 (England, Wales, Northern Ireland) or Police Scotland on 101. EU: your national police cybercrime reporting site. Also report the account to the platform.

Sources

Figures are the latest published by each source when this guide was updated. Reported fraud losses are a floor: most fraud is never reported.

Deepfake video call scams: how to spot a fake face or voice on a live call