You’ve seen the movies: a too-perfect Taylor Swift selling free cookware. A pretend Tom Hanks providing dental insurance coverage.
They give the impression of being actual—however they’re not.
New analysis from McAfee Labs reveals simply how widespread these scams have turn out to be.
Our 2025 Most Harmful Movie star: Deepfake Deception Record ranks the celebs and influencers whose likenesses are most hijacked by scammers, and divulges a rising marketplace for AI-powered pretend endorsements.
On the high of the listing? Taylor Swift, adopted by Scarlett Johansson, Jenna Ortega, and Sydney Sweeney. Globally, names like Brad Pitt, Billie Eilish, and Emma Watson additionally seem among the many most exploited.
McAfee additionally launched its first-ever Influencer Deepfake Deception Record, led by gamer and streamer Pokimane, displaying that scammers are actually focusing on social platforms simply as aggressively as Hollywood.
High 10 Most Harmful Celebrities (2025): U.S
High 10 Most Harmful Celebrities (2025): International
High 10 Most Harmful Influencers (2025): International
Why Scammers Love Well-known Faces
The components is easy: use somebody folks belief to promote one thing that doesn’t exist.
Criminals clone superstar voices and faces with AI to advertise pretend giveaways, skincare merchandise, crypto investments, or “unique” offers that lead straight to malware or cost fraud.
Based on McAfee’s survey of 8,600 folks worldwide:
- 72% of People have seen pretend superstar or influencer endorsements.
- 39% have clicked on one.
- 1 in 10 misplaced cash or private knowledge, a mean of $525 per sufferer.
Scammers exploit belief. Once you see a well-known face, your mind routinely lowers its guard. And that’s precisely what they depend on.
How Deepfakes Are Making Headlines
AI has made these scams look frighteningly actual.
Trendy deepfake turbines can mimic voices, facial actions, and even micro-expressions with uncanny precision. Solely 29% of individuals really feel assured figuring out a pretend, and 21% admit to having low confidence recognizing deepfakes.
That’s how pretend endorsements and AI romance scams have exploded on-line.
- A lady in France misplaced practically $900,000 to a scammer posing as Brad Pitt, full with AI-generated photos and voice messages.
- TV host Al Roker was just lately focused by a pretend deepfake video claiming he’d suffered coronary heart assaults.
- Tom Hanks, Oprah, and Scarlett Johansson have all been utilized in fraudulent advertisements for merchandise they by no means touched.
“Seeing is believing” doesn’t apply anymore, and scammers comprehend it.
The Psychology of The Rip-off
Deepfake scams don’t simply depend on know-how; they prey on parasocial relationships, the one-sided emotional bonds followers kind with public figures.
When a “superstar” DMs you, it doesn’t at all times really feel unusual. It feels private. That sense of intimacy makes folks act earlier than pondering.
It’s the identical psychological playbook behind romance scams, now supercharged by AI instruments that make pretend movies and voice messages sound heartbreakingly actual.
Find out how to Defend Your self
- Pause earlier than you click on. If an advert or put up appears out of character or “too good to be true,” it in all probability is.
- Confirm on the supply. Examine the superstar’s verified account on social media. Scammers typically copy profile pictures and bios however miss delicate particulars like posting type or engagement patterns.
- Search for indicators of AI manipulation. Look ahead to off-sync lip actions, robotic tone, or lighting that appears inconsistent.
- By no means share private or cost particulars by way of messages, even when the sender seems to be verified.
- Use McAfee’s Rip-off Detector, included in all core plans, to routinely analyze texts, emails, and movies for indicators of fraud or deepfake manipulation.
Key Takeaways
Movie star and influencer tradition has at all times formed what we purchase, however now it’s shaping how scammers deceive. These deepfakes don’t simply steal cash; they chip away at our belief in what we see, hear, and share on-line.
The celebrities on the heart of those scams aren’t accomplices, they’re victims, too, as criminals hijack their likenesses to use the bond between followers and the folks they admire. And as deepfake instruments turn out to be simpler to make use of, the road between actual and faux is vanishing quick.
The subsequent viral “giveaway” won’t be an advert in any respect…it may very well be bait.
You’ll be able to’t cease scammers from cloning well-known faces, however you possibly can cease them from fooling you. Use McAfee’s Rip-off Detector to scan hyperlinks, messages, and movies earlier than you click on.
