Deepfakes in Fake Investments: 119 Cases in a Month and a Half in Kazakhstan

A Case from Taldykorgan: 7 Million Tenge

In September 2026, a resident of Taldykorgan saw an Instagram ad about earning money through trading, followed the link, and left her contact details. Following the scammers' instructions, she transferred money to third-party accounts. The deposited funds and expected dividends were displayed in an electronic wallet. The woman transferred a total of more than 7 million tenge — and was unable to withdraw a single tenge. A pre-trial investigation is underway into this case.

"Unblocking" the Profits

When a person decides to withdraw the money, it turns out that first a fee must be paid. Or a tax. Or insurance. Or account verification. After one payment, another appears. The logic works against the victim: if several million has already been invested, it seems that another 100,000–200,000 tenge is worth paying. This is precisely the moment when it is important to stop. If access to your own funds constantly requires additional payments, that is a signal to check who you are dealing with.

Check the Company, Not the Blinking

Usually, people are advised to look closely at the deepfake: whether the lip movements match the speech, whether the person blinks naturally, whether there is blurring or audio defects. But technology is developing faster than our ability to spot fakes. Before long, there may simply be no "strange blinking" at all.

Terentyev advises checking not the video but the offer. If a famous entrepreneur is allegedly promoting a platform, find the company's official website yourself. Find out which legal entity is receiving the money and whether it has the necessary permits. Verify the company not through links from a "consultant," but through official sources you find on your own. Five minutes of such checking are worth more than minutes of studying a face in a video.

Deepfakes are no longer just about investments. A government official or an acquaintance might "speak" on screen. An unusual request to transfer money, give a code, or urgently follow a link requires verification regardless of how familiar the face and voice seem. If a message is allegedly from a relative, contact them through another, previously known channel.

What to Do If the Money Is Already Gone

First — do not increase your losses by trying to recover what has been transferred. Do not pay a "withdrawal fee," "tax," or "insurance." Report the fraudulent transaction to the bank as quickly as possible through an official channel. Save correspondence, receipts, phone numbers, links, screenshots of the personal dashboard, and recipients' details. Contact the police, including by calling 102. Report a suspicious video using the "Report" function on the social network.

A few years ago, a familiar face in a video could be considered proof of authenticity. Today, technology convincingly reproduces appearance and voice. So before transferring money, check not the face in the ad, but the company, the license, the investment terms, and the recipient's details.