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Consumers have a role in protecting themselves, Benishti says, by understanding that “they cannot 100 percent trust communication, especially unsolicited.” Fraud fighters need to be ready to

adjust their strategies as scammers are “very astute technologists and accomplished psychologists,” with evolving techniques, LiaBraaten says. “It’s a cat-and-mouse game,” he says. “We just

have to stay ahead of them.”   HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF AS AI FUELS MORE SOPHISTICATED SCAMS DON’T TRUST YOUR CALLER ID. If you get a call from a business, hang up and find the company’s

number (for a bank, it will be on your financial statement, for example), then call directly. No matter what the pitch, anyone asking you to pay with a gift card is a scammer, according to

the Federal Trade Commission. PAUSE BEFORE YOU CLICK. Never click on a link in an email or text message without confirming that it’s from a legitimate source. Criminals can craft extremely

sophisticated-looking messages, as well as fake websites that convincingly mimic real ones. CONSIDER CHOOSING A SAFE WORD FOR YOUR FAMILY. Share it only with family members or others in

your inner circle. If someone calls claiming to be a grandchild, for example, you can ask for the safe word or words — rubber ducky, Fred Flintstone, whatever — and if the caller doesn’t

know it, it’s clearly a scam. Photo illustration: Tyler Comrie (photo: Getty Images) CALL BACK YOUR “GRANDCHILD” IN CRISIS. If you don’t have a safe word and your supposed grandchild or

child calls saying there’s a medical emergency or some other crisis (sometimes callers say they’ve been kidnapped), they may add that their phone is broken so you can’t call them. Pause,

take a breath (criminals try to rattle you to disrupt your rational thinking), and tell them you want to try to call them back anyway. Chances are your real grandchild will pick up, unharmed

and bewildered by your concern. DON'T CLICK ON ADS TO DOWNLOAD SOFTWARE. The FTC says that if you see an ad for software that piques your interest, rather than clicking on a link, go

to the company’s website by typing in its address. If you search for it online, the agency warns, “remember that scammers also place ads on search engines. They’ll appear at the top of your

search results page and might have a label that says ‘Ad’ or ‘Sponsored.’ Scroll past those to get to your search results.” GUARD YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION. To avoid identity theft, be

careful about disclosing your full name, your home address, your Social Security number, credit card and banking information, and other personal details. Definitely don’t share information

with someone you only know from email or texting. SPREAD THE WORD. Educate your loved ones on the latest scams and the advice above. REPORT SCAMS. If you spot a scam or you’ve been a

victim of one, report it to the police, as well as the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov. The more information authorities have, the better they can identify patterns, link cases and ultimately

catch the criminals.    FAKE ADS, FAKE AI It’s worth playing around with a chatbot to get a sense of the technology’s potential (and it’s kind of fun). But note that cybercriminals

advertise AI tools on social media and search engines with links that will download malware on your computer if you click on them, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warns. Some sites are

fake, the FTC says, but “some ads actually take you to the real software and download the malware through a ‘backdoor,’ which makes it hard to know you got hacked. Then, the criminals could

steal your information and sell it to other hackers on the dark web, or get access to your online accounts and scam others.” You can also report scams to the AARP Fraud Watch Network

Helpline, 877-908-3360. It’s a free resource, with trained fraud specialists who can provide support and guidance on what to do next and how to avoid scams.