Asking AI for a caricature with everything it knows about you can open the door to digital fraud

Each of these data are key pieces to build a detailed digital profile. By combining image, text and context, habits, relationships, frequent locations and job responsibilities are revealed that can be used by cybercriminals to design more professional deceptions. Thus, a fraud that mentions the company where someone works, their position or even a family member is much more credible and increases the chances that the victim will trust and hand over sensitive information or money, especially if one takes into account that, in Peru, about 1 in 5 users admit that they do not know how to recognize a fake email or message, according to Kaspersky’s Digital Language study.

This type of carelessness is not isolated. According to the same Kaspersky study, 18% of users in Peru admit that they do not review the permissions that an application requests before installing it, either because the information is too extensive or because they simply do not pay attention to it.

Furthermore, when interacting with these platforms, not only the final image is shared. Depending on the service and its privacy policies, the original photo, texts or instructions written by the user, usage history and certain technical data such as IP address, device or interaction patterns may also be stored. Some of this information may be retained to operate the service, improve performance or train Artificial Intelligence models, which means that the content does not necessarily disappear after the cartoon is generated and may remain longer than the user imagines.

“The greatest risk is not in the illustration that is created, but in everything that people reveal to obtain it. When someone shares details about their work, their family or their routine, they are unwittingly providing information that can be used for highly targeted fraud or identity theft,” says Leandro Cuozzo, Security Analyst in the Global Research and Analysis Team for Latin America at Kaspersky. “In this context, the accumulated exposure of personal data can become a gateway for social engineering attacks, identity theft or personalized scams”

Although these tools can be a fun way to experiment with digital creativity, experts recommend adopting more cautious habits when participating in these types of trends. To reduce risks, Kaspersky experts recommend:

• Avoid writing identifiable data at the prompt such as full name, position, company, city, address, schedules or routines, even if it seems “just to personalize” the image.
• Do not upload photos where logos, credentials, documents, plates, screens, facades can be seen or any element that allows you to be located or associated with an organization.
• Do not share information or images of minors, or reveal family information that can be used to impersonate close people or design emotional deceptions.
• Review the privacy policy and permissions of the platform before using it, especially related to content retention and use of data for training or service improvements.
• Complement prudence with active digital protection: Security solutions help reduce the risk of malicious links, dangerous downloads and phishing techniques associated with this type of trends, in addition to reinforcing the security of the devices where this content is created and shared.