Thai Prime Minister "almost blew away" the national treasury, just because of a phone call?

In a surprising incident, Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra recently revealed that she almost became the victim of a sophisticated money-losing scam in which a fraudster used artificial intelligence (AI) technology to imitate the voice of a national leader.

On January 14, Ms. Paetongtarn received a voice message from a caller claiming to be the leader of another country, informing her of a donation she had not yet made. However, instead of making a domestic transaction, the link she received led to a bank account outside Thailand.

What is special here is that the voice in the message is not that of a real person, but created by AI voice cloning technology. A stranger used this technology to copy the voice of a famous leader, making Prime Minister Paetongtarn think it was a real exchange.

Initially, she did not suspect anything and sent a reply message, agreeing to continue the discussion. However, on the evening of January 13, the scammer called again, but the call was missed because she had gone to bed. The next morning, the scammer sent a new message, asking her to make the contribution that Thailand had not yet made.

When she heard the second recording and received a donation request, Ms. Paetongtarn became suspicious. The recording made her feel even more unreasonable, when the fraudster pointed out that Thailand was the only country in Southeast Asia that had not fulfilled this financial obligation.

However, the sign that made her fully realize that this was a scam was the information about the bank account the scammer asked her to transfer money to. She noticed that the account was in another country, which confirmed her suspicions.

As she continued to read the text messages from the subject, the Thai Prime Minister became more and more convinced that this was an elaborate hoax. She immediately contacted the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Economy.

Not only the Thai Prime Minister, many people in the Southeast Asian region are becoming targets of these tricks. Transnational criminals take advantage of technology to conduct fraudulent transactions and make illegal profits, leaving people and officials unknowingly affected.

Immediately after the incident was discovered, Thailand's Ministry of Digital Economy and Society stepped in to investigate and handle the case. The authorities are working closely with international partners to track down and handle those behind these acts.

Lieutenant General Trairong Phiwphan, director of the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB), said investigators were working with their counterparts in neighboring countries to verify information and trace the gang. However, due to the sophisticated nature of the case, information about the country where the gang operated has not been made public.

Prime Minister Paetongtarn’s case is just one of many examples of how technology can be used to increase the risks of being affected. With the rapid development of AI and voice cloning tools, people need to be on high alert, not only for calls from unknown numbers but also for technologies that can fake voices, making conversations difficult to identify.

The incident not only raised concerns about high-tech crimes but also showed the growing influence of international criminal gangs. For just a brief moment, the Thai Prime Minister almost became the victim of a complex and sophisticated cyber attack.

The Thai government also pledged to continue implementing measures to protect citizens from dangers posed by technology, while promoting international cooperation in dealing with transnational criminal gangs.

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