Jim thought the pencil sketch he received from a woman he was dating online was proof that she really loved him.
The black-and-white drawing showed the two of them together, with her resting her head on his shoulder. It arrived on his WhatsApp messages along with her holding a sign that said, “I Love You Jim”.
He sent her $60,000 after that.
Security experts who examined the photos determined it was fake – all created with AI.
A New AI Weapon In Romance Scams – AI Sketches In 3 Seconds
The technique of using AI to generate realistic sketches appears to be a powerful tool for scammers now.
Criminals running pig butchering operations have discovered that AI-generated portraits create an illusion of devotion that breaks down the walls victims put up.
A host of Telegram Channels, including Super-AI, GPT-量灵AI, ChatGPT-Grok-TGAI, and many others is helping the scammers create these sketches in less than 3 seconds. They upload a photo and quickly transform it into a sketch.
The power of a personalized portrait runs deeper than just flattering words. Research on gift-giving shows that personalized presents activate the brain’s reward systems, releasing the neurochemicals that give people that “warm glow effect” mimicking love.
A Flood Of Sketches Shows Its Working
Based on user activity, these artistic sketches are among the most popular requests scammers are making of the AI.
In one post on Super-AI, the scammer named “Olivia” requests a sketch of a man wearing a hat. She posts a photo and asks the AI to “Paint it on the table, where there are also pencils and erasers”
The sketch is produced in seconds, signed by “Olivia”
In another post on ChatGPT AI on Telegram, a scammer named “Fiora” asks the AI to sketch out a man in a dark suit with the specific instructions, “Don’t leave any AI traces”.
Again, the AI delivers. Who is this man? Did he like the sketched portait he received from Fiora? Did he end up sending her money?
And in another post, the scammer wants to put the sketch in a realistic setting. They request to “put the picture on a table in a living room at night”
Does it appear to work – yes, perfectly. Did the victim receive this picture and feel joy? No one ever made a portrait of him before.
How To Spot The Fakes
For sketches, AI-generated “handwriting” often appears too perfect and uniform, lacking the natural variation of actual human writing.
And sketches don’t have any of the imperfections you might spot in a truly hand-crafted sketch. The sketch will match the photo nearly identically.
AI-generated images often show distorted hands, unrealistic teeth or eyes, and overly smooth skin tones. Hair frequently shows an unnatural halo effect where it meets the background. Earrings and other paired accessories often appear asymmetrical.
These AI sketches may take 3 seconds to create, but the emotional damage may last for years.
