Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
The Clare Byrne Show on Newstalk. With Aviva Insurance.
Fake investment products now being promoted by AI generated ads. They're on the rise and banks are asking customers to be alert. I'm joined by Niamh Davenport, now head of financial crime with the Banking and Payments Federation of Ireland. Good morning, Niamh. Good morning. How are you? You're concerned about this, I see.
Chapter 2: What are the dangers of fake investment products promoted by AI-generated ads?
So they're on the increase, AI generated images of politicians, well-known people encouraging customers to part with their cash.
Exactly. We've new figures from Angarda Siocona and they show an increase of over 20% in reports of these investment frauds in 2025. That's compared to 2024. And the losses associated with them are €20 million.
Chapter 3: How are banks responding to the rise in investment fraud?
So huge amounts of losses and we're seeing this trend continuing into 2026, which is concerning.
So what you believe and what the BPFI are suggesting is that because the government is talking about introducing a state-backed investment scheme, that these fraudsters have latched on to that.
Exactly. Investment scams are nothing new and most investment scams tend to follow the same pattern. But what fraudsters do is they exploit current news trends. So now that we're seeing the coverage on the state backed savings and investment schemes, they're using the language around these to make their scams appear more legitimate.
For example, last year, it wasn't really politicians we were seeing in these ads. It was more Irish celebrities instead. So they just use whatever's in the news to make their ads appear real, I suppose.
And do you have any evidence that they're working, that people are being convinced by these ads?
People are definitely falling victim to the, everyone's looking for ways to invest their money. And we are seeing the age group that's mostly targeted with these is the fifties age group. And I think the reason investment scams in general are so convincing is, you know, cost of living crisis, things are getting more expensive. You're planning for retirement.
You want to make sure that you've got the best, your money secured in the best areas. So that's why these, these scams are very, very, interesting to people I suppose.
So how does it work then if you respond to one of these ads is it all done online or do you speak to a real person?
So it's kind of both actually what happens is you see one of the ads online you're asked to click on a link for more information and you're encouraged to register filling in a short form with contact details and you'll receive more information.
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Chapter 4: What statistics highlight the increase in investment fraud reports?
They could be using brochures, for example, of investment schemes that you think are real. And eventually, when the fraudster does get the money, they quickly transfer the money out of the account off and overseas where it's cashed out then.
Is that money gone then? Do you ever get it back?
There have been refunds, but you need to act as quickly as possible. Like I said, the fraudsters are sitting there waiting for the money. And because this goes on for quite a number of months, you know, you believe that it's to be true.
We've even seen some cases where the fraudsters, for a monthly basis, will send statements to the person so that they believe that the investment is safe, but it's really a scam, obviously. So the quicker you report it, the more likely you are to get your money back. Report it to your bank and also report it to an unguarded shiokona.
And the amount of money involved here, I mean, it's quite astonishing, really, isn't it? I see that Michael Cryan from the Guards, Detective Superintendent Michael Cryan, says it can start at around 250, which might be OK for some people to stomach. But if it's your last 250, it's a dose. But right up to huge amounts of money, Niamh, that people can hand over in these situations.
Yeah, on average, they range from, I said, 250 up to 10,000 euro. But we've seen figures far beyond that, significantly beyond that. This is, like I said, it's investment coming up to retirement. It's your pension lump sum. Maybe you've inherited money recently as well. You're looking at ways, what can I do with this? How can I secure this for my future? And it's just significant amount of money.
And it's not, as you said, it's not necessarily wealthy people who are, you know, who are used to investing or anything like that. It's people's hard-earned money that they've been putting aside for years that they are looking to get a return on.
Our listeners are concerned about their parents and their grandparents here. And this one says, my parents think these sorts of things are real, totally real, and they're ripe for fraud. Another asks, how do you teach your parents or your grandparents who weren't brought up with this technology? How do you teach them to be careful or what to be aware of?
Yeah, the videos are really convincing. They're very, very real. So, you know, what I would say is be wary of any online adverts or videos.
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Chapter 5: How do current events influence investment scams?
Avoid clicking on any links. Always search for the company or in the investment directly through a trusted source. It's great that people are talking about their parents and having those conversations because seeking trusted advice and talking to people and actually checking to see, taking the time out rather than reacting quickly is really the best way to do that.
We also have a tool on our FraudSmart website, or you can go to directly scamchecker.ie as well. And you can check the legitimacy of some of the websites there. It will help you assist. It's not a 100% verification, but it will help you assist in assessing whether it's a legitimate investment scheme or not. And really, we need to talk about it.
We need to keep the awareness of there and keep talking about it and let people know Because the more we're alert to the scams, the more we can be on our guard and actually take that time to do our research.
And also the state-backed investment scheme is not up and running yet.
It hasn't even started.
If anyone is selling that, they're selling a pup because it's not there.
And this is why they're so clever, though. They're using the language maybe around it, but not necessarily saying those exact words. We'll see that continue, though, as the media coverage continues on it. To be sure, look, we are supportive of the state-backed schemes. They're really important for the economy.
But what we'd say is we're just trying to stop any fraud around them as well and get that awareness out there.
And if any so-called financial advisor, Niamh, is putting you under pressure because there's limited places here, that is an immediate red flag, isn't it?
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Chapter 6: What age group is most vulnerable to these investment scams?
They're using this money to fund organised crime. This is a very serious issue. It's not somebody trying to just make a quick buck and fund their own lifestyle. This is organised crime. It's funding human trafficking, drug trafficking. So they're looking in there and that's why it takes so long. They're happy to wait a couple of months for people to make a payment because there's big money in it.
Someone else says, I don't know what to do with my children because they're clicking into all of these things when they're on my phone. But you have to actively make a payment, don't you, in order for these fraudsters to get what they're looking for?
Yes, I would be limited to sharing any personal information anyway. I would not hand over your information. Fraudsters will sell information on the dark web, such as names, addresses, credit card details, even if you don't make a payment. All of that information is valuable. Your personal information and your financial information is so valuable to fraudsters. So really don't hand that over.
Don't be clicking away on links and handing that over to somebody you've never even met. You wouldn't hand your car keys to somebody on the street. The same kind of thing applies, you know, just take that time, be cautious and think about what you're doing before, before you act. I think there's a lot of education in schools and fairness around being safe online. and what to do.
So sometimes I think maybe they're more educated than us, but it's really just think twice before you do anything and before you hand out any sort of information to anyone.
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Chapter 7: How do scammers typically operate when targeting victims?
These are ads, like these have to be paid for. So the social media companies are essentially making money from these ads. I mean, really, they're the ones we should be holding responsible here.
Yeah, online platforms have a really important role to play alongside banks and regulators and fairness and law enforcement government. Everybody has a role to play in doing this. So tackling it and coming together, the collaborative approach is already being supported through the national cross sector anti-fraud form that was established under the national payment strategy last year.
And that's kind of driving a coordinated approach to combating fraud. There's also going to be changes under what's called the payment services regulation. Uh, the PS or that's coming out later this year and that there was a piece in there for tech companies and online companies to verify all financial services. So that's a really important change that's going to be happening.
The regulation is published later this year and some companies are already doing that. So they are playing their part and they are trying to combat it. It's just so much out there, the vast volume of these.
Before they take the money for the ad, they should be checking and verifying whether this is a legitimate company rather than us having to do it as the end user. But that's probably an argument for another day. As far as the Banking and Payments Federation goes, you're encouraging people to be very careful before they part with their money.
Niamh, thank you very much for joining us on the programme.
Niamh Davenport there.
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