A British telecommunications company O2 has introduced an innovative solution to combat phone scammers - an artificial intelligence system named Daisy, who poses as a chatty grandmother with an endless supply of stories about her beloved cat Fluffy.
"Hello, scammers. I'm your worst nightmare," declares Daisy in her introduction, before proceeding to frustrate fraudsters with meandering conversations that can last up to 40 minutes.
The AI system, developed with assistance from renowned scam-hunter and YouTuber Jim Browning, deliberately wastes scammers' time by engaging them in circular discussions and feigning confusion about their instructions. This keeps the fraudsters occupied and prevents them from targeting actual potential victims.
In recorded conversations, scammers can be heard growing increasingly exasperated with Daisy's tactics. "It's nearly been an hour! For the love of [bleep]," one scammer exclaimed in frustration. Another admitted defeat by noting, "I think your profession is bothering people, right?"
O2 implemented a strategy called "number seeding" to attract scammers to Daisy's phone line, placing her number on lists commonly used by fraudsters to find targets. The company reports that Daisy can maintain conversations with scammers for extended periods, effectively disrupting their illegal operations.
The initiative serves two main purposes: protecting potential victims by occupying scammers' time and raising public awareness about telephone fraud. As Murray Mackenzie, O2's director of fraud, points out, Daisy represents an important reminder that callers may not always be who they claim to be.
Former Love Island contestant and scam victim Amy Hart has joined the campaign, helping to showcase how Daisy operates and highlighting the real impact of phone scams on victims.
"While they're busy talking to me, they can't be scamming you. And let's face it, dear, I've got all the time in the world," Daisy cheerfully explains, embodying a new technological approach to fighting fraud in the digital age.