In a groundbreaking initiative to combat rampant fraud attempts affecting British citizens, O2 in collaboration with VCCP’s AI creative agency faith has unveiled an innovative campaign featuring a lifelike Conversational AI named Daisy. This unique effort aims to distract and deter scammers by engaging them in conversation, ultimately reducing their capacity to target real victims.
The campaign emerges at a time when reports indicate that one in five people in the UK face a fraud attempt weekly. Daisy, designed to mimic a real individual, is the latest asset in O2's anti-fraud arsenal. Created using advanced AI technology, she closely resembles a family member of a VCCP staff member, enhancing her believability. This strategic choice was made to exploit the scammers' tendency to target older individuals, reinforcing the campaign's core objective of safeguarding the vulnerable.
Daisy’s operational framework is designed to keep scammers engaged for extended periods. Over numerous phone calls, she has managed to divert scam attempts by sharing elaborate family stories, discussing her interests like knitting, and generating fictitious personal details, including imaginary bank information. By prolonging conversations, Daisy has effectively prevented fraudsters from reaching actual targets and highlighted the methods these scammers employ, empowering customers with knowledge on recognising and avoiding similar threats.
In the development of Daisy, O2 and faith collaborated with prominent UK scambaiter Jim Browning to ensure the AI was equipped with strategic insights that have proven effective in engaging and occupying scammers, with some calls lasting more than forty minutes. This collaboration contributed to the comprehensive training of Daisy's conversational abilities and personality, essential for her role in the campaign.
Daisy's impressive realism is attributed to a combination of generative AI models, a custom-trained large language model (LLM) for her knowledge base, and sophisticated image-to-video technology that brings her visual and auditory dimensions to life. The efforts culminate in a campaign that includes a two-minute hero film showcasing Daisy in action, alongside shorter versions for social media platforms such as Meta and TikTok.
Simon Valcarcel, Marketing Director at Virgin Media O2, expressed enthusiasm for the campaign, stating, “At O2, we’ve been investing heavily in the fightback against fraud and this campaign demonstrates the lengths we’re willing to go to keep our customers safe.” He also noted the importance of remaining vigilant against persuasive callers, stressing the need for consumers to report suspicious calls and messages.
The launch of this initiative follows O2’s research revealing that 71% of British citizens harbour a desire to retaliate against scammers, with wasting time cited as the primary reason for their reluctance to engage in such practices themselves.
Additionally, O2 has partnered with Amy Hart, a former Love Island contestant and scam victim, to further the campaign's reach, particularly among the Gen-Z demographic, who often believe they are too savvy to fall for scams. The campaign emphasises O2’s commitment to blocking millions of fraudulent communications monthly, providing new AI-driven tools and caller identification services as part of its continuous effort to protect customers.
To enhance the public's understanding of fraud prevention, O2 has launched a dedicated webpage filled with practical advice on identifying potential scams, equipped users with the resources needed to protect themselves effectively.
Source: Noah Wire Services