Irish consumers 6 times more likely to be scammed by falling for AI fake

Kenneth Fox

Mistaking fake AI-generated social media posts as real makes Irish consumers six times more likely to be scammed, Visa finds.

Irish consumers who mistake fake AI-generated content for real are nearly six times more likely to be tricked by scammers than those who do not (73 per cent vs 12 per cent).

Visa reveals the average online scam results in victims losing €124.50, which could be estimated to be an annual monetary loss of €71.81 million to the Irish economy.

Victims spend an average of 8.9 days resolving online scams, and 50 per cent of those targeted say they now avoid shopping with smaller or unfamiliar brands.

The way people engage with content online plays a major role. Those who share a post without checking its accuracy first are five times more likely to be targeted and impacted by online scams compared to those who tend to take a moment to verify it first (35 per cent vs. 6 per cent).

Every day online habits - such as skimming headlines, resharing without verifying and trusting AI-generated content - are creating new vulnerabilities that scammers are quick to exploit:

59 per cent have believed online content was genuine only to later discover it was an AI-generated fake. Over a third (38 per cent) rarely read beyond a headline before forming an opinion

Almost a quarter (23 per cent) have reshared a post without checking its accuracy.

As online scams grow more sophisticated and widespread, this shift in consumer behaviour is having a tangible impact on the wider economy.

Almost half (42 per cent) have changed how they shop online after being scammed, and one in two people (50 per cent) targeted by online shopping scams say they now avoid shopping with smaller or unfamiliar brands.

This is having a particularly significant impact on small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which account for 99.8 per cent of Ireland’s business population and depend heavily on consumer confidence to survive and grow.

Conor Langford, Visa country manager for Ireland, said: “AI is transforming how we live, shop, work and connect, but it’s also reshaping the landscape for fraud.

"Scammers are using the same technology that brings us innovation to deceive and exploit consumers, blurring the line between real and fake. These scams can hurt real people, costing not just money but peace of mind and trust."