Brazilian scammer uses AI deepfake technology to pose as Lewis Hamilton to steal money from unsuspecting female fan

Lewis Hamilton's fame has surpassed motorsports and spread into other worlds making him a truly global star with fans from all places, including Brazil.

Brazilian scammer uses AI deepfake technology to pose as Lewis Hamilton to steal money from unsuspecting female fan

Lewis Hamilton (via Twitter)

The use of artificial intelligence or AI has seen a boom in recent times as a new term called ‘deepfake’ has taken over the world. There have been several reports of fans of celebrities being catfished as some imposters posing as famous faces online have extorted money from them. Now, a fan of Lewis Hamilton almost fell prey to a similar incident which happened in the country where the Briton is held with extremely high esteem.

A Brazilian scammer recently went to great lengths by creating a fake profile and a fake ID using artificial intelligence to pose as Lewis Hamilton. The Mercedes racer, known for being very close to his fans, enjoys massive popularity in Brazil. In fact, he also has an honorary Brazil citizenship which was conferred on him in 2022 just when his teammate George Russell displayed a brilliant performance and won the Sao Paulo GP in the South American country.

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With an ingenious fake profile and AI, the scammer managed to convince the Brazilian woman that he was the real Hamilton. The unlucky fan, a die-hard follower of the Silver Arrows racer, was elated to receive a reply from the scammer’s account, not realising that it was actually a fake Lewis Hamilton profile.

Sceptical fan caught imposter posing as Lewis Hamilton online when he refused to send video

Lewis Hamilton’s fans are often blinded by the global superstar’s fame, and one Brazilian woman felt the same when she sent a message to his Instagram account while not realising that it was actually a fake ID. The woman was beside herself with joy when she received a reply. And then, it was when she asked for a video from the Mercedes racer and he refused to send it that the fan thought there might be something wrong.

Lewis Hamilton at the Dior Men's show
Lewis Hamilton at the Dior Men’s show (via X)

But the scammer went an extra mile to make his heist a success as he sent an audio recording in which Lewis Hamilton’s voice could be heard, but now it is known that the voice was produced by artificial intelligence. As per the reports of GPBlog.com, the scammer also made a fake agency based in Rio de Janeiro, and claimed that the fan could buy herself a special ‘fancard’ for $1,500.

Once the fan was suspicious of her interaction with the Lewis Hamilton account that she still did not know to be fake, she decided to consult an expert. And that is when the fake Instagram account holder was caught red handed and the scam did not go through.

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