They used faces and voices by Giorgia Meloni, Matteo Salvini, Elly Schlein and Carlo Calenda for promote fake investment platformsBut behind the commercials that promised easy earnings in cryptocurrencies, there were hidden digital scammers.
La Consob intervened ordering thethree websites shut down which used “clones” of political leaders to attract unsuspecting savers and 14 other web addresses engaged in abusive financial promotion and intermediation activities.
Deepfake: The "Famous Faces" Deception, the New Frontier of Scams
- commercials were circulating on social media and websites, with manipulated videos in which prominent public figures appeared, from Meloni to Schlein, apparently intent onsponsor new opportunities di investment in cryptocurrencies or alternative financial instrumentsA fraudulent use of image and voice, constructed using artificial intelligence and deepfake techniques, aimed at lending credibility to unlicensed companies that were illegally raising funds from small investors.
I three darkened portals – it-more.culinaryjoy.sbs, ayquozeber.com and cyberirfy.icu – promoted unauthorized trading platforms. In parallel, the Commission ordered the blocking of 14 more sites with names like InvestiumGroups, Protradealliance, Aureo Flowdex, Servelius, and BrokerageAI, all involved in similar activities of abusive offering of investment services and crypto-assets.
From the "growth decree" to the MiCAR: the regulatory framework
With these latest interventions, The total number of sites blocked by Consob has risen to 1.443 Since July 2019, the Authority has been empowered to block access to the portals of unauthorized financial intermediaries. The most recent action is also based on new powers Introduced by the European MiCAR Regulation (EU 2023/1114) and Legislative Decree no. 129 of 5 September 2024, which extend the Authority's powers to crypto-asset services aimed at Italian savers.
A warning for savers: "Always check who offers you investments."
Consob draws citizens' attention to the risk growing number of online frauds: "it is essential – warns the Authority – to always verify that the operator is authorized and that a prospectus or white paper is available for offers of financial instruments or crypto-assets". The Consob website has an active section “Watch out for scams!”, which collects reports, lists of irregular operators and advice for investing consciously.
