By Shikin Louis
KUCHING, July 17: A local Feng Shui consultant’s voice was cloned by scammers using Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology in a bid to cheat his friends out of RM4,500.
The sophisticated trickery was exposed today during a press conference led by Sarawak United Peoples’ Party (SUPP) Public Complaints Bureau Chief Milton Foo alongside the victim, Alex Ling.
The incident unfolded on Tuesday (July 14) when a mutual friend of Ling and Foo received a distress call from an individual whose voice closely resembled Ling’s. The caller claimed that he urgently needed to borrow RM4,500 to fund a relative’s emergency medical operation at a hospital.
Suspicious of the sudden request, the friend reached out to Foo, who immediately advised him on how to handle the situation.
“I told my friend on the phone, ‘You continue to trap this guy, the so-called Alex Ling. Get the bank account number from him. See whether he gives Alex Ling’s bank account number or a third-party one. If it is a third party, it confirms it’s a scam,'” Foo said during the press conference.
When the scammer called back about 30 to 50 minutes later, the friend successfully recorded the conversation.
While Ling noted that the cloned voice was not a 100 per cent match—estimating it to be around 50 to 60 per cent similar—he warned it was still convincing enough to trick acquaintances.
“The sound is okay, not very similar, but if someone doesn’t know me so well, they may fall into a trap,” Ling explained.
Expressing deep concern over the threat to his professional reputation, Ling clarified that he has never solicited funds from clients or friends, nor does he have outstanding debts with loan sharks.
He confirmed that a formal police report has been lodged to clear his name.
Foo revealed that Ling’s encounter marks the third voice-cloning scam case brought to the SUPP Public Complaints Bureau within the last two weeks alone.
The first case involved a hawker from the Kenyalang Market, where scammers successfully deceived several of the victim’s friends into transferring money. The second incident targeted a hawker from Pending Seafood whose phone was compromised to solicit funds from her circle of friends.
Foo emphasised that with modern AI technology, scammers can effortlessly clone anyone’s voice using publicly available audio clips from media broadcasts or social media.
“My voice can be found anywhere, right? Especially on TVS. If you want to get my voice, it’s very simple. With my voice, they can do any content they want. This is AI,” Foo warned.
To safeguard hard-earned money, Foo shared several vital steps the public must take when facing suspicious distress calls.
He explained that scammers rely heavily on panic and a false sense of urgency, often fabricating scenarios involving medical emergencies or police arrests.
Foo urged targets of these scams not to rely strictly on a phone call or voice message. He advised individuals not to simply assume a call is from a relative or family member and immediately transfer money into a designated account. Instead, he stressed the importance of staying calm, getting in touch with the real person face-to-face, and meeting them in person.
Furthermore, Foo pointed out that verifying the designated bank account name is a crucial step. A clear mismatch between the caller’s identity and the actual name on the third-party bank account serves as a definitive red flag.
Foo reminded the public not to make hasty electronic transfers out of misplaced kindness or panic, urging everyone to stay calm and verify the situation thoroughly first. — DayakDaily
