Deepfakes have moved past being a novelty — they’re now a hidden danger in everything from social posts to phone calls. Surfshark’s study reveals that to this day, people have lost at least $3.7B to deepfake fraud. An investigation into the origins of these scams reveals social media is the leading threat, accounting for 47% of recorded losses ($1.73 billion).
“Social media platforms give scammers instant access to billions of users simultaneously. A single deepfake video can go viral in hours, reaching millions of potential victims before it’s detected or removed. No other channel offers that kind of reach at zero cost,” explains Luís Costa, Research Lead at Surfshark.
But the scale and cause of deepfakes on social media can vary significantly. Considering the World Cup context, an innocent Haaland deepfake may have gained millions of views but did not cause any financial damage. However, Costa notes that when someone engages with a fake government social media post promoting dubious investment schemes, the resulting losses can amount to thousands of dollars — a serious concern.
Other prominent deepfake fraud origins:
Impersonation fraud (cases where criminals use deepfake-enabled tactics to impersonate real people, bypass identity checks, or gain unauthorized access to financial services) is the second-largest origin category, accounting for $911 million, or 25% of losses;
