Brighton-based kitchen fitter Des Healey lost £75,000 last year in an AI-based crypto scam involving personal finance expert Martin Lewis, whom he looked up to for financial guidance. Healey recently attended an interview with Lewis on BBC Radio 5 Live, where he detailed how he lost his entire savings and was neck-deep in loans after being lured by a highly sophisticated scam advert on Facebook. The scam involved fraudsters using a deepfake of Lewis promoting a non-existent Bitcoin investment scheme, supposedly endorsed by Elon Musk.
Scammers used AI to manipulate Lewis's voice and make the whole thing appear like a TV interview from his home. When Healey walked into the BBC studio, it was naturally difficult for Lewis to face him, knowing how the self-employed person was duped in his name. During the interview, Lewis highlighted that people involved in organised crime have "perverted" his reputation despite spending his entire career trying to help people.
