Scams to Watch Out for in 2026

Fraud is evolving, and at a rate never seen before. This year, scammers can create fakes of voices, messages, even entire identities, all in an effort to con you into spending your money. Here are the scams to watch out for in 2026.

Scam #1. AI Voice Cloning

We all dread the day a loved one calls us for help. But what if that call comes from a complete stranger’s phone?

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This strategy is one of the most common novel scams, where scammers pretend to be your family member in need of assistance. They’ll call, asking for money to pay a fine, pay their bills, settle their rent, or even get out of jail.

And the call is convincing enough to make you reach for your wallet or phone app and wire money to the account number being listed through. But the entire phone call was made by an AI sampling as little as three to five seconds of the target’s speech.

Here’s what you can use to tell it apart:

You’re asked to pay for something immediately, regardless of actual time of day, and the caller is unwilling to explain more.
Typically, scammers want to get money to a specific or private bank account or using a gift card. Legitimate services and law enforcement will never do this.
The call comes from an unknown number, but it can also be a spoofed number.
The actual “script” of the call can contain weird pauses or breaks.

Scam #2. Deepfake Celebrity Investment Scams

We’ve already seen this making the rounds across various social media platforms in 2025, including celebrities such as Elon Musk announcing an incredible cryptocurrency opportunity. The video shows some “proof” that you’ll get your investment back or there’s a photo indicating your winnings.

However, celebrities don’t promote financial and get-rich schemes, especially not on YouTube or X. If you go to their actual profile, you’ll find no mention of the scheme at all, which is one of the surefire signs that it’s fake.

And yet, it’s an incredibly lucrative scam, as cryptocurrency accounts for nearly 90% of all deepfake fraud scams in 2025 (which are used to develop the image of the celebrity).

Scam #3. Hiring Scams

Job scams are expected to stay as prominent as ever, with fraud going in both directions.

The first is the “fake jobs,” where you’ll be contacted for a ludicrously generous opportunity for working at home. All you have to do is provide your contact information, your social security number, and purchase the initial registration fee for the employer’s website or cash in a check for equipment. Of course, all of these are part of the scheme to give away your money or identity.

On the other end of the scale is the potential for deepfake candidates. A seemingly perfect candidate could be inserted throughout the entire interview process so long as the position is remote and doesn’t require too much scrutiny into appearance. The candidate can successfully answer most common interview questions. If and when “they” get the job, they get access to company systems and information.

Scam #4. AI Chatbot Romance and Family Scams

Emotionally intelligent bots powered by generative AI are basically made to be the perfect chat companion for anyone. They can be programmed to respond convincingly and build trust over time. More importantly, it only takes a bit of time to customize the bot according to its target, allowing one scammer to run a ring of dozens of chatbots simultaneously.

As with most scams, the key here is to trust your gut. If something feels off, it probably is. You think you talk to someone in your town, while the scammer is in Vietnam. Discuss any online romantic interest with a trusted friend before sending money, and be especially cautious of people from dating apps who claim to be traveling, in the military, or working abroad.

Scam #5. Synthetic Identity Fraud

Synthetic identity fraud involves scammers blending real information about you with fake details to create a believable profile that can open accounts and take out loans. Since the account has some real data, it’s less likely to get flagged by security measures. Then, the “fake” account is linked to your real one, slowly lowering your credit or trying to directly use your money.

While this is a relatively novel field, the key to protecting yourself here is to keep your banking information private and regularly check your accounts for unauthorized or suspicious activity.

Scam #6. Subscription Traps and Data-Resale Scams

If you find a “free” photo editing tool online that looks amazing, it might actually come with a hidden subscription that can be nearly impossible to get rid of. Worse, the company has sold your personal data to data brokers, and now you’re receiving spam and phishing attempts.

The scam works because most people forget about relatively small recurring charges, and the company can collect millions in unauthorized fees. Simultaneously, the company harvests and resells user data to data brokers, creating a secondary income stream.

How to Protect Yourself From Scams to Watch Out for in 2026

While the technology behind fraud is evolving, the human factor remains the same, as scammers rely on panic and urgency to prevent you from thinking and forcing you into rash decisions. The best defense in 2026 is skepticism and the willingness to verify, verify, and verify again before taking action or sending money.

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