DOVER, Fla. (WFLA) — A Florida woman wants to warn others after falling prey to an elaborate AI-powered scheme that used cloned audio of her daughter’s voice to demand thousands of dollars in fake bond money.
Sharon Brightwell told Nexstar’s WFLA that the ordeal began last Wednesday when she received a call from a number that looked like her daughter’s. On the other end of the line, a young woman was sobbing, claiming to have been in a car crash.
“There is nobody that could convince me that it wasn’t her,” Sharon said. “I know my daughter’s cry.”
The caller said she had hit a pregnant woman while texting and driving and claimed her phone had been taken by police. A man then got on the line, claiming to be an attorney representing her daughter. He told Sharon that her daughter was being detained and needed $15,000 in bail money in cash.
“He gave very specific instructions,” Sharon said. “He told me not to tell the bank what the money was for, that it could affect my daughter’s credit.”
Following his instructions, she withdrew the money and placed it in a box as directed. A driver showed up to her house to pick up the package.
But it didn’t stop there.
Sharon received another call saying the unborn child had died and that the family, described as “Christian people,” had agreed not to sue her daughter if she provided another $30,000.
That’s when her grandson stepped in. He was on the phone with a family friend who quickly called Sharon directly this time with her real daughter on the line.
“I screamed,” Sharon said. “When I heard her voice, I broke down. She was fine. She was still at work.”
The family believes the suspects used videos from Facebook or other social media to create a convincing AI-generated replica of her daughter’s voice.
“I pray this doesn’t happen to anyone else,” Sharon said. “My husband and I are recently retired. That money was our savings.”
Now, the family is urging others to take precautions, including creating a private “code word” to verify identities over the phone in emergency situations.
“If they can’t give it to you,” Sharon said, “hang up and call them directly.”
A report has been filed with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. The family also launched a GoFundMe campaign to help recover their financial losses.
