Brazil's Fraud Syndicate Raup Miliaran Through Gisele B\"undchen's Deepfake Advertising On Instagram

Supermodel Gisele B\"undchen (photo: x @virgoessence)

JAKARTA - The Brazilian police managed to dismantle a network of online fraudsters who used videos and images of Gisele B\"undchen's deepfake supermodel to deceive the public through advertisements on Instagram. According to a Reuters report on Friday, October 3, the perpetrators are thought to have raised more than 20 million Brazilian reals (about US$3.9 million) from the proceeds of this crime.

Four suspects were arrested this week, and authorities confiscated their assets in five states. Investigations by the Rio Grande do Sul cyber crime unit found thousands of suspicious transactions identified by the COAF federal anti-money laundering agency.

The police called this case one of Brazil's first efforts to crack down on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technology in fraud based on celebrity image manipulation.

Meta, the parent company of Instagram, stated its policy of banning misleading advertising by using public figures fake to deceive users. Meta claims to have a dedicated detection system for celebrity celebrities, as well as a team of trained reviewers to check for such violations.

The management of Gisele B\"undchen appealed to the public to be careful of advertisements that offer unreasonable discounts by displaying the faces of celebrities. They advise consumers to always verify the authenticity of advertisements through the official brand channel or public account of the person concerned, as well as report allegations of fraud to the authorities.

According to the Head of the Cyber Crime Unit Rio Grande do Sul, Eibert Moreira Neto, the investigation began in August 2024 after a victim reported being deceived by a fake video featuring B\"undchen promoting beauty products.

Another sign uses the face of the supermodel to promise a suitcase gift, provided that the buyer pays the shipping fee. But the item was never sent, "said Neto.

Isadora Galian, a member of the investigative team, added that most of the victims lost a small amount of money, an average of under 100 reals (around Rp. 300 thousand), so many of them were reluctant to report.

This situation creates a kind of 'statistical immunity' for the perpetrators. They know the victims rarely report, so they operate massively without fear of being caught, "said Galian.

The suspects are now charged with money laundering and online fraud, while further investigations continue to be carried out to trace the flow of proceeds from the crimes and international deepfake networks involved.