Having been in cybersecurity for over 25 years, I’ve seen my fair share of scams and frauds. As an investigator and a defender against cybercriminals, I am no stranger to the tricks and tactics that bad actors use to exploit unsuspecting victims. But with the advent of new AI tools, these fraudsters have become more sophisticated, and now, they’re coming after you and me with alarming precision.
I recently received a call that I want to share with you—a call from “The Orange County Sheriff’s Office.” Or at least, that’s what my phone’s caller ID showed. The person on the line introduced themselves as a sheriff and asked if I remembered signing a certified letter on October 9th, promising to show up for jury duty on October 26th. According to them, I had missed the date, and a bench warrant was now out for my arrest.
The caller had an unsettling amount of personal information about me: my full name, date of birth, email address, and even my Social Security number. I knew that my information had been part of a breach in the past and had been dumped on the dark web more than once, so while I wasn’t thrilled, I wasn’t entirely surprised. But the level of detail made me uneasy.
They passed the phone over to “Sgt. Mike Patton” who immediately reminded me that I was on a recorded line and that anything I said could be used against me in court. The whole setup felt legitimate—almost too legitimate. Sgt. Patton claimed that someone had signed for a certified letter on my behalf and that… continue reading here.
