A scam call used my relative's cloned voice. What do we report, and to whom?
My mother got a call on Tuesday afternoon. It was my son, her grandson. He said he had been in a car accident, that another driver was hurt, that he was at a police station and needed money for a lawyer before they would let him go. He was crying. She says it was his voice, no question, the way he says "Grandma", everything.
Cite
Global 100 Forum, "A scam call used my relative's cloned voice. What do we report, and to whom?", https://forum.global100.org/q/a-scam-call-used-my-relatives-cloned-voice-what-do-we-report/, accessed 2026-10-15.She was on her way to buy gift cards when she decided to call me first. My son was in a chemistry class. He had been there all afternoon.
Nothing was lost, so part of me says we got lucky and should move on. But my mother is shaken, I am angry, and I do not know what we are supposed to do with this. My son streams games online and has for two years, so his voice is out there for anyone to take. That is probably where it came from.
Plain questions. Do we report this to the local police even though no money changed hands? Is there a government agency for this? The phone company? Her bank? Is there anything anyone can actually do with the report, or is it just paperwork? And should my son take his videos down? I would rather hear from people who have been through it than read another article that ends with "stay vigilant".
1 more reply
Most helpful first- Dan OkaforMember ·
Rob, I am sorry, and glad your mother called you first. That instinct is the whole defence, honestly.
On the practical side: she will have the number in her call log. I would call it back from a different phone and record the call, and I would give the number to the police. They can trace who it is registered to. Even if they do not act on one call, a number tied to a dozen reports is something they can work with.
And no, do not make your son take his videos down. He did nothing wrong and it would not change much now.
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