AI 'Bosses' Are Replacing Con Artists in Fraud Targeting the Elderly

"At eleven o'clock last night, my mother's phone screen was still on, its blue light casting a glow on her face," wrote a netizen named "Talk Jun" in a social media post.

With the help of glasses, her mother gingerly navigated the screen, a smile playing on her lips.

When Jun leaned closer to the screen, she saw a man with slicked-back hair, dressed in an expensive suit, speaking in a deep voice: "Sister, staying up so late really breaks my heart."

Next to him was a fine print: "AI-generated content."

A spate of AI bazong (bossy CEO) characters, clad in formal suits, has been capturing the attention of elderly viewers with endearments and blandishments.

They continually bombard their audience with phrases such as "sister" or "I miss you," along with daily solicitations. Some even genuflect as they propose.

Despite their life experience, many elderly individuals succumb to purchasing goods promoted by these virtual tycoons or, worse, falling victim to scams.

These virtual scammers may pose even more danger than their predecessors, such as the influencer Xiucai, since the latter was at least portrayed by a real person, and creating such a figure takes time.

In contrast, the generation of domineering AI bosses is rapidly increasing in a gray area.

While some compliant individuals may label their icons as "AI-generated," this labeling does not seem to prevent the elderly from becoming victims of scams. In fact, such AI tags may serve to protect the scammers more than the victims.

This type of marketing, termed "silver-age track" marketing, targets middle-aged and elderly audiences and has proven so successful that online crash courses on how to manage such accounts are now available.

In this brave new cyberspace, silver-age "care" is emerging as the new frontier.

Upon closer examination, one finds that AI is taking over roles once filled by skilled con artists like Xiucai.

The AI scammers quickly learn their craft.

First, they build a public persona to attract followers, ultimately monetizing through live commerce.

Although this area is legally ambiguous, they should be subject to the same regulations as real-life live-stream hosts. In addition to AI-generated labels, they should also indicate "marketing" or "promotion," and there must be accountability for marketing shoddy or fake products.

Identifying this "someone" is straightforward, as platforms are reaping significant profits from traffic and sales.

There is also a social aspect to the vulnerability of elderly individuals, indicating that their adult children should pay more attention to their spiritual needs, visit them more often, and monitor their digital interactions.