说到情人节,满街的鲜花和巧克力确实营造了一种难以抗拒的浪漫氛围,但在这份甜蜜的背后,我们不得不面对一个日益严峻的现实,那就是针对情感需求的网络诈骗正处于历史最高水平。Speaking of Valentine's Day, the flowers and chocolates filling the streets indeed create an irresistible romantic atmosphere, but behind this sweetness, we have to face an increasingly severe reality: online fraud targeting emotional needs is at an all-time high.
根据最新的数据统计,仅在去年一年,这类所谓的“浪漫骗局”就让美国人损失了整整三十亿美元。According to the latest statistics, in just the last year alone, these so-called "romance scams" caused Americans to lose a staggering three billion dollars.
这三十亿美元实际上可能只是冰山一角,因为很多受害者在意识到自己被骗后,往往因为感到羞耻而选择沉默,没有向有关部门报案。This three billion dollars is likely just the tip of the iceberg, because after realizing they have been scammed, many victims often choose silence out of shame and do not report the crime to relevant authorities.
在这些令人咋舌的数字背后,隐藏着一种被称为“杀猪盘”的诈骗模式,这个词听起来非常残酷,但它精准地描述了诈骗分子的手段。Hidden behind these staggering numbers is a scam model known as "pig butchering"; while the term sounds very cruel, it accurately describes the methods used by scammers.
就像养猪一样,骗子会花费大量的时间和精力,与受害者建立深厚的情感联系,获取他们的信任,这被称为“养猪”。Just like raising a pig, scammers spend a vast amount of time and energy establishing a deep emotional connection with the victim to gain their trust, which is called "fattening the pig."
等到受害者完全卸下防备,投入了真情实感,甚至开始规划共同的未来时,骗子就会开始实施“杀猪”,也就是通过各种理由反复诱导受害者投资或转账,直到榨干他们的最后一分钱。Once the victim completely lowers their guard, invests real feelings, or even starts planning a shared future, the scammer begins the "butchering," which means repeatedly inducing the victim to invest or transfer money under various pretexts until every last penny is drained.
令人担忧的是,从2020年到2024年,这类骗局在全球范围内已经卷走了超过750亿美元的财富。Worryingly, from 2020 to 2024, these scams have swept away over 75 billion dollars in wealth globally.
而现在,随着人工智能技术的飞速发展,这些骗局正在经历一场可怕的升级,变得更加容易实施,成本更低,且利润更高。And now, with the rapid development of artificial intelligence technology, these scams are undergoing a terrifying upgrade, becoming easier to execute, lower in cost, and higher in profit.
以前,如果一个身在海外的骗子想要诈骗一个美国人,他至少需要精通英语,能够理解复杂的文化隐喻和情感表达。Previously, if an overseas scammer wanted to defraud an American, they at least needed to be proficient in English and able to understand complex cultural metaphors and emotional expressions.
但现在,哈佛大学肯尼迪学院的研究人员指出,人工智能驱动的实时翻译工具已经完全打破了这道语言壁垒。But now, researchers at the Harvard Kennedy School point out that AI-driven real-time translation tools have completely shattered this language barrier.
这意味着,骗子不再需要花费数年时间学习外语,他们现在的潜在猎物范围瞬间扩大了数百万倍。This means scammers no longer need to spend years learning a foreign language, and their range of potential prey has instantly expanded millions of times over.
人工智能不仅仅是解决了语言问题,它还在根本上改变了诈骗的规模,成为了骗子手中的“力量倍增器”。Artificial intelligence hasn't just solved the language problem; it has fundamentally changed the scale of fraud, becoming a "force multiplier" in the hands of scammers.
过去,一个骗子可能同时只能维持与少数几个受害者的“恋爱关系”,因为维持这种虚假的人设需要巨大的精力和记忆力。In the past, a scammer could likely only maintain "romantic relationships" with a few victims at a time, because sustaining such fake personas required immense energy and memory.
但现在,借助AI工具,一个人可以同时通过脚本运行二十个甚至更多的诈骗对话,而且丝毫不露破绽。But now, with the help of AI tools, a single person can simultaneously run twenty or more fraudulent conversations via scripts without revealing a single flaw.
网络安全专家克里斯·尼惠斯在分析这一现象时提到,AI辅助的诈骗不仅比传统手段更有利可图,而且操作起来极其廉价和简单。Cybersecurity expert Chris Niehuis mentioned when analyzing this phenomenon that AI-assisted fraud is not only more profitable than traditional methods but also extremely cheap and simple to operate.
在网络的阴暗面,也就是所谓的“暗网”上,犯罪分子甚至可以像购买普通软件一样,购买到全套的“浪漫诈骗工具包”。On the dark side of the internet, the so-called "dark web," criminals can even purchase complete "romance scam toolkits" just like buying ordinary software.
这些工具包里应有尽有,包括配备了全天候客户支持的服务、用户评价系统,以及分级的定价套餐。These toolkits have everything one could need, including services equipped with 24/7 customer support, user review systems, and tiered pricing packages.
更可怕的是,这些工具包提供了预先构建好的虚假人设,这些人物的照片是由AI生成的,在互联网上根本找不到重复的痕迹,因此无法通过传统的“以图搜图”来识破。Even more frightening is that these toolkits provide pre-built fake personas with photos generated by AI that leave no duplicate traces on the internet, making them impossible to expose via traditional "reverse image search."
工具包里甚至包含了针对诈骗每个阶段的详细对话脚本,以及用于伪造视频通话的深度伪造工具。The toolkits even contain detailed conversation scripts for every stage of the scam, as well as deepfake tools used to forge video calls.
正如专家所言,实施这种犯罪的技术门槛在本质上已经消失了,任何一个心怀不轨的人只要愿意花钱,就能立刻成为一个高水平的情感骗子。As experts have said, the technical barrier to committing this crime has essentially vanished; anyone with malicious intent who is willing to spend money can immediately become a high-level emotional scammer.
虽然我们可能会想,随着AI的发展,骗子会不会最终把自己也“自动化”掉,导致失业呢?Although we might wonder, with the development of AI, will scammers eventually "automate" themselves out of a job?
实际上,目前的情况更多是一种“增强”而非完全的“替代”。In reality, the current situation is more of an "augmentation" rather than a complete "replacement."
很多时候,在屏幕另一端敲击键盘的,依然是活生生的人,但他们的处境往往也令人唏嘘。Often, the one typing on the keyboard on the other side of the screen is still a living, breathing person, but their plight is often lamentable.
据估计,在东南亚的一些诈骗中心里,至少有22万人被困其中,他们本身就是人口贩卖的受害者,被迫在暴力的威胁下实施诈骗。It is estimated that in some scam centers in Southeast Asia, at least 220,000 people are trapped; they are victims of human trafficking themselves, forced to commit fraud under the threat of violence.
对于控制这些中心的犯罪集团来说,引入AI技术只是意味着他们能以更低的人力成本获得更高的利润率。For the criminal syndicates controlling these centers, introducing AI technology simply means they can achieve higher profit margins with lower labor costs.
尽管目前AI在模拟人类情感方面还不能说完美无缺,但它的进化速度是惊人的。Although AI is not yet perfect at simulating human emotions, its speed of evolution is astonishing.
我们要记得,2016年AlphaGo击败世界围棋冠军时,震惊了全人类,而现在的AI技术迭代速度远超当时。We must remember that when AlphaGo defeated the world Go champion in 2016, it shocked all of humanity, and the current iteration speed of AI technology far exceeds that time.
专家预测,也许不用几年,甚至更短的时间,我们就会面对思维模式完全异于人类的AI骗子,它们将拥有超乎想象的说服力。Experts predict that perhaps within a few years, or even sooner, we will face AI scammers with thought patterns completely different from humans, possessing unimaginable persuasive power.
那么,为什么人们会如此容易掉进这类陷阱呢?So, why do people fall into these traps so easily?
这其实与技术无关,而与人性有关。This actually has nothing to do with technology, but rather with human nature.
浪漫骗局之所以独特,是因为它攻击的是人类最核心的需求——爱与归属感。Romance scams are unique because they attack the most core human needs: love and a sense of belonging.
美国卫生局局长在2023年正式宣布,我们正处于一场“孤独流行病”之中,其对健康的危害甚至相当于每天吸15支烟。The U.S. Surgeon General officially declared in 2023 that we are in the midst of a "loneliness epidemic," the health hazards of which are equivalent to smoking 15 cigarettes a day.
这种社会性的孤立与心脏病、痴呆症、抑郁症甚至早逝都有着密切的联系。This social isolation is closely linked to heart disease, dementia, depression, and even premature death.
据报道,全球有六分之一的人感到孤独,而这些渴望连接的灵魂,正是骗子眼中的完美猎物。Reportedly, one in six people worldwide feels lonely, and these souls yearning for connection are the perfect prey in the eyes of scammers.
骗子通常会使用AI生成的开场白来撒网,一旦有人回应,他们就会使用“爱情轰炸”的策略,也就是在短时间内密集地表达爱意和关注。Scammers usually use AI-generated opening lines to cast a wide net, and once someone responds, they employ a "love bombing" strategy, which involves intensely expressing love and attention within a short period.
当受害者确信自己处于一段浪漫关系中后,骗子就会开始通过难以追回的方式索要钱财,比如礼品卡、电汇或加密货币。Once the victim is convinced they are in a romantic relationship, the scammer begins demanding money through untraceable methods, such as gift cards, wire transfers, or cryptocurrency.
他们通常会编造各种突发的危机,比如生病、生意周转不灵或遭遇意外,利用受害者的同情心和焦虑感来迫使他们紧急转账。They usually fabricate various sudden crises, such as illness, business cash flow problems, or accidents, exploiting the victim's sympathy and anxiety to force urgent transfers.
一旦达到了目的,或者受害者已经被榨干,他们可能会直接消失,也就是所谓的“幽灵化”,或者继续编造理由进行二次收割。Once they achieve their goal, or the victim has been drained dry, they might disappear immediately, known as "ghosting," or continue fabricating reasons for a second harvest.
现在的AI浪漫骗局更是利用了深度伪造的视频通话、社交媒体上的“廉价伪造”档案以及声音克隆技术。Current AI romance scams further utilize deepfake video calls, "cheapfake" profiles on social media, and voice cloning technology.
网络安全专家指出,这类骗局之所以极其危险,是因为它们利用的是“爱”,而不是像网络钓鱼利用“紧迫感”或技术支持诈骗利用“恐惧”。Cybersecurity experts point out that these scams are extremely dangerous because they exploit "love," unlike phishing which exploits "urgency" or tech support scams which exploit "fear."
当一个人陷入爱河时,往往会失去理智,哪怕直觉告诉他们有些不对劲,他们也会选择忽略。When a person falls in love, they often lose their reason; even if their intuition tells them something is wrong, they choose to ignore it.
老年群体通常是这类骗局的主要目标,因为退休、丧偶等生活变故会加剧他们的社会孤立感。The elderly population is usually the primary target of such scams because life changes like retirement or widowhood exacerbate their social isolation.
骗子会利用这一点,让受害者感到自己被理解、被关怀,以此骗取他们的毕生积蓄,甚至是他们赖以养老的房产。Scammers exploit this to make victims feel understood and cared for, thereby swindling them out of their life savings or even the real estate they rely on for retirement.
但我们不能误以为只有老年人才会上当,事实上,任何人都可能成为受害者。However, we must not mistakenly believe that only the elderly fall for this; in fact, anyone can become a victim.
尽管Z世代是数字原住民,从小在互联网环境中长大,但数据显示,他们遭遇在线诈骗的可能性实际上是老一辈的三倍。Although Gen Z are digital natives who grew up in an internet environment, data shows that their likelihood of encountering online fraud is actually three times that of the older generation.
这是因为年轻人在线时间更长,接触潜在风险的机会更多,虽然他们损失的金额可能不如老年人多,但受骗的频率却很高。This is because young people spend more time online and have more opportunities to encounter potential risks; while the amount they lose may not be as much as the elderly, the frequency of being scammed is very high.
还有一个令人心碎的事实是:一旦一个人成为了诈骗受害者,他很有可能会被再次盯上。There is another heartbreaking fact: once a person becomes a scam victim, they are very likely to be targeted again.
骗子会建立受害者的详细档案,甚至将这些名单在犯罪网络中共享,被称为“肥羊名单”。Scammers build detailed profiles of victims and even share these lists within criminal networks, known as "sucker lists."
这并不是受害者的道德缺陷,而是犯罪分子精心设计的心理陷阱。This is not a moral failing of the victim, but a psychological trap carefully designed by criminals.
而且,这类诈骗的追回率极低,大约15%的美国人曾因网络浪漫骗局损失金钱,但这其中只有四分之一的人能追回全部损失。Moreover, the recovery rate for such scams is extremely low; about 15% of Americans have lost money to online romance scams, but only one-quarter of them are able to recover all their losses.
浪漫骗局往往在羞耻和秘密中滋生,受害者有时甚至会受到勒索,骗子威胁说如果他们向家人朋友透露,就会曝光他们的隐私信息。Romance scams often breed in shame and secrecy, and victims are sometimes even blackmailed, with scammers threatening to expose their private information if they reveal it to family or friends.
目前,学术界也开始关注这一现象,研究人员正在探索如何利用AI本身来反制这些AI驱动的骗局。Currently, the academic community has also begun to pay attention to this phenomenon, and researchers are exploring how to use AI itself to counter these AI-driven scams.
例如,通过检测诈骗模式、预测新兴策略,以及建立更强大的社区支持系统来帮助受害者。For example, by detecting scam patterns, predicting emerging strategies, and building stronger community support systems to help victims.
我们生活的社会正变得对“人机之恋”越来越习以为常。The society we live in is becoming increasingly accustomed to "human-machine romance."
电影《Her》中,男主角爱上了一个人工智能操作系统,这部电影设定在2025年,而现在看来,这个预言离我们并不遥远。In the movie "Her," the male protagonist falls in love with an AI operating system; the film is set in 2025, and it now seems this prophecy is not far off.
如今,许多AI聊天机器人被设计成专门用来吸引用户,通过“免费增值”的模式,对更深入、更个性化的互动收费。Nowadays, many AI chatbots are designed specifically to attract users, charging for deeper, more personalized interactions through a "freemium" model.
这些所谓的“伴侣机器人”虽然明面上是AI,但它们收集用户数据用于定向广告,这在某种程度上,是否也是一种利用孤独感榨取资源的形式呢?Although these so-called "companion bots" are ostensibly AI, they collect user data for targeted advertising; to some extent, isn't this also a form of exploiting loneliness to extract resources?
在这个充满不确定性的数字时代,我们必须采取措施保护自己的心灵和钱包。In this digital age full of uncertainty, we must take measures to protect our hearts and wallets.
最简单也最有效的一条原则是:坚决不要给任何未曾在现实生活中见过面的人汇款。The simplest and most effective rule is: absolutely do not send money to anyone you have not met in real life.
这一条规则虽然听起来老生常谈,但它能阻止绝大多数的浪漫骗局。Although this rule sounds like a cliché, it can stop the vast majority of romance scams.
此外,如果你在网上遇到一个看似完美的对象,可以要求进行即兴的视频通话。Additionally, if you meet a seemingly perfect partner online, you can request an impromptu video call.
在通话中,要求对方做一些随机的动作,比如摸摸鼻子、转个圈或者拿起身边的某个特定物品。During the call, ask the other person to perform random actions, such as touching their nose, spinning around, or picking up a specific object nearby.
目前的深度伪造技术虽然强大,但在处理这种“无脚本”的即时动作时,往往会出现破绽,比如面部扭曲或动作不自然。While current deepfake technology is powerful, it often reveals flaws when handling such "unscripted" real-time actions, such as facial distortion or unnatural movements.
如果你收到的照片看起来过于完美,可以使用反向图片搜索工具,看看这些照片是否是从其他网站盗用的。If the photos you receive look too perfect, you can use reverse image search tools to see if these photos were stolen from other websites.
同时,使用VPN隐藏你的真实位置也是一个好习惯,因为骗子经常会追踪用户的位置,并根据所在的城市或国家来定制诈骗剧本。At the same time, using a VPN to hide your real location is also a good habit, because scammers often track users' locations and customize scam scripts based on the city or country they are in.
如果不幸真的发生了,尽早向执法机构和银行报告是至关重要的,这能增加追回资金的一线希望。If misfortune truly strikes, reporting it to law enforcement agencies and banks as early as possible is crucial, as this can increase the slim hope of recovering funds.
最后,我想对所有可能正在经历这些的人说,无论你现在感到多么孤独,或者因为被骗而感到多么尴尬,请记住这并不是你的错。Finally, I want to say to anyone who might be going through this: no matter how lonely you feel right now, or how embarrassed you feel about being scammed, please remember this is not your fault.
骗子最擅长的就是剥夺人们的希望,不要让他们连你最后的希望也一并夺走。What scammers are best at is stripping people of hope; do not let them take away your last shred of hope as well.
在这个情人节,保护好你的心,不仅仅是防止它破碎,更是防止它被利用。This Valentine's Day, protect your heart, not just from being broken, but from being exploited.