JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — You’ve probably ignored a spam call before.
But now, the person on the other end of those calls may not even exist.
It happened to Patrice Fuller.
“I was so blown away by it,” says Fuller. “I was caught off guard because it, first off, I was spoofed. It came on my caller ID and showed a trusted organization and their phone number, but it was truly an AI scam call”
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And Patrice is an expert in this field.
As the Jacksonville VP and community manager at JPMorgan Chase, she’s constantly coaching people on how to spot AI scams.
Thankfully, Patrice was smart and didn’t share any personal or financial information.
But the FBI says AI-powered scams are becoming one of the fastest-growing cybercrime threats.
In its most recent report, for the first time, the bureau tracked losses specifically tied to AI.
In 2025 alone, more than 22,000 complaints were reported. Victims lost nearly $893 million.
One tactic investigators are increasingly warning about is ‘voice cloning.’
“It only takes three seconds for AI to be able to translate your audio,” says Fuller.
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Scammers can then take that recording and create a fake version of your voice.
Using it to claim a family member has been arrested or pretending to be your bank.
“So you want to end that call as quickly as possible so that they’re not able to clone your voice,” says Fuller.
But aside from tactics, experts say AI makes it easier for scammers to up the volume of the spam calls you get.
AI scams may be getting smarter, but so are the tools designed to stop them.
Most major wireless carriers now offer free or low-cost call screening apps.
Action News Jax Chandler Morgan downloaded one of those apps and tested it out for at least two months on her phone.
So far this month, the app analyzed 274 of her calls, and of those, blocked more than 205, which were flagged as spam or fraud risks.
Almost all of the blocked calls were ones appearing to offer bogus loans.
The app takes the layer of protection one step further than your phone’s operating system, which can sometimes still allow spam or fraud calls through — without flagging them.
Experts say turning on these tools adds another layer of protection before your phone ever rings and can give you peace of mind instead of blocking hundreds of numbers on your own.
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Patrice says that tech can be useful, but having a plan with your family goes a long way.
“Create a family safe word with your loved ones, right, so that if there is an emergency, you know that it is indeed your loved one and not a scammer,” says Fuller.
She also recommends:
- Joining the National Do Not Call Registry
- Don’t share your passwords
- Hang up if anything feels rushed
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