Influencers and Celebrities Targeted by AI Deepfake Scams

Social media influencers and celebrities are increasingly falling victim to deepfake scams, where their likeness is digitally manipulated to promote products or services they have no affiliation with. This growing problem, often perpetrated by international cybercrime groups, is eroding the credibility and hard-won relationships influencers have built with their followers.

Karen Flowers, a 49-year-old beauty influencer and founder of Curl House, recently encountered a deepfake ad promoting a life insurance company. The clip featured an entity that looked and sounded like her, but it was not her. "Clearly, it was my image. I looked at it and knew exactly what YouTube video it came from. My lips were synchronized with the words, but it didn’t sound like me," Flowers told The Post. She described the experience as "horrifying."

These illicit operations often steal images and voices of social media stars to create fabricated advertisements for products the individuals have never encountered. The FBI reported that cybercriminals used impersonation tactics to defraud Americans of approximately $893 million in 2025 alone. Google has also taken action, suing a Chinese network called Outsider Enterprise, which is accused of using AI tools to generate over 100,000 financial scam websites.

The trend initially targeted high-profile celebrities. For years, low-tech scams involved creating fake social media accounts mimicking celebrities to solicit money. More recently, deepfake videos have been used to falsely show figures like Oprah Winfrey, Kim Kardashian, and Gwyneth Paltrow promoting unlikely products. Taylor Swift was depicted in a deepfake leading an online giveaway of cookware, while YouTube star MrBeast appeared to be hawking iPhones at a steep discount.

Tom Hanks, who was featured in a deepfake promoting a dental plan in 2023, warned fans on Instagram, "I have nothing to do with it." In 2022, entrepreneur Bethenny Frankel sued TikTok, alleging the platform failed to stop deepfake ads that showed her selling counterfeit designer goods, leading to harm to her personal brand. TikTok stated it has strict policies to protect intellectual property and prevent misleading content.

For influencers and micro-celebrities, fighting back can be particularly challenging. Tracking down the scammers is often nearly impossible, and many lack the resources to pursue legal action. Flowers discovered that the company using her image led to a shell corporation, leaving her unable to send a cease-and-desist letter. In her case, a consumer advocate eventually intervened, leading YouTube to remove the fraudulent commercial.

Kara Mendelsohn, a fashion influencer, expressed frustration on Instagram Stories after her image and voice were stolen for AI ads. "This is NOT me!!! This company has stolen my image and my voice to create this AI ad," she wrote, noting that Instagram did not remove the content. Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, acknowledged that identifying deepfake content is challenging due to evolving technology but stated it is continuously improving its systems. The company advises users to check the trustworthiness of accounts and look for unnatural elements in content.

Model and journalist Nassia Matsa was surprised to see an ad featuring an image from a 2019 editorial shoot of hers, used to promote a product she had no knowledge of. "The [entity that did the phony ad] chose diverse models to seem modern and relevant, a very performative act, since none of us got paid or even consented to be part of this ad," she stated.

Arielle Lorre, a Los Angeles-based "skinfluencer," found a deepfake of herself endorsing a skincare product from a company she had never worked with. The person conducting the interview in the promotion also reported that their image had been stolen.

These incidents highlight the potential for malicious actors to exploit social media and artificial intelligence. As Bethenny Frankel noted, "You must enter at your own risk. You must not operate freely. You must be protected."