Cyber Kidnapping Poses a Growing Threat

Criminals have been finding some creative ways to pry money from their victims. One of the more sinister scams is being called cyber kidnapping or virtual kidnapping. The details can vary, but a successful cyber kidnapping is both frightening and expensive for the victims.

How Cyber Kidnapping Works

Your CEO is traveling abroad for business when your company receives a call from someone saying that they’ve kidnapped him. You can hear the panicked voice of your CEO on the other end of the line, so you’re sure it’s true, and you agree to the kidnapper’s ransom demand. Following the kidnapper’s instructions, you authorize a wire transfer.

But the CEO was never kidnapped. The voice you heard – the one you thought belonged to your CEO – was an AI voice clone.

You’re relieved that your CEO is safe, but you’re also angry. There’s no way to recover the wire transfer, so your company is out a substantial sum of money.

According to Dark Reading, a similar scam attempted to extort $1 million from a woman in Arizona. The criminal claimed he had kidnapped the woman’s daughter and threatened to harm her if she didn’t pay up. The mother could hear her daughter yelling, crying a pleading for help, but what she heard was actually a voice clone.

International Travelers Are Being Targeted

Although voice cloning can make these scams highly convincing, cyber kidnapping is also possible without deepfake technology.

According to the BBC, scammers convinced a 17-year-old international student to isolate himself. The criminals then sent a picture that the student took of himself to his parents and used it to claim that they had kidnapped him. The student’s family paid $80,000 to the scammers.

This scam is not considered to be an isolated occurrence. In fact, cyber kidnapping is a growing problem. Although there are no concrete figures on the frequency of this crime yet, there have been other cases involving foreign exchange students.

International travelers are particularly vulnerable because it can be hard to reach them to see if they’re safe. Scammers may also target victims who have enough money to pay ransoms.

The FBI Is Warning the Public

The FBI says that virtual kidnappings have existed for at least two decades, but it’s recently become more of a problem. Criminals now have access to information posted on social media, and this gives them all the details they need to create a convincing story. Increased international travel may also be contributing to the trend.

Virtual kidnappers often go to great lengths to keep their victims on the phone, and they may request multiple wire transfers to different accounts.

Real Kidnappings Are Also a Problem

If you receive a call that someone has been kidnapped, it could be a scam – but real kidnap-for-ransom schemes are also a problem. Once again, criminals often target international travelers and victims with enough money to pay a ransom.

Businessmen have been targeted. In one example, Reuters says a prominent British businessman was kidnapped while in Ecuador. Police rescued him four days after he was kidnapped, and nine people have been arrested.

Criminals Use Many Tactics

Cyber kidnappings are just one of the constantly evolving tricks that criminals use to trick victims out of money, and deepfake technology has made it easier than ever.

CNN says a finance worker at an international company was tricked into authorizing a $25 million payment in a scam involving deepfake technology. Criminals used AI to pose at the company’s CFO during a video conference call.

CNBC this scam is part of a growing trend, and the problem may get worse due to the rise of generative AI technology.

Insurance Coverage for Kidnapping and Cyber Kidnapping

Kidnappings and virtual kidnappings pose a risk for both individuals and businesses.

The FBI recommends that people avoid posting travel plans online. Families are also encouraged to discuss the risk of virtual kidnappings and to create a “password” that they can use during emergencies to confirm their identities.

Businesses may want to invest in insurance to guard against the growing risks.

• Kidnap, ransom, and extortion insurance provides coverage that includes ransom reimbursement, crisis management expenses, legal liability, and psychiatric expenses.
• Cyber insurance can include coverage for social engineering schemes. Tangram offers cyber insurance with a $100,000 social engineering fraud sub-limit.

Do you need help securing coverage for kidnapping and cyber kidnapping risks? Contact our Expert:

Caroline Dougherty

AVP, Sr KRE Underwriter

(E) [email protected]

(P) 707-981-4366