Skip to main content

Sound Advice: February 12, 2025

A.I. Phone Call or Just Plain Stupid (J.P.S.) 

A few days ago, I received an incoming call from Yacolt, Washington (population: 1,626).  I ignore most calls of this sort, but was curious to find out what it was about.  Rather than saying “hello”, I answered “May I  help you,” figuring that whatever I said could be recorded and in some way used “inappropriately.” 

The caller’s response: “This is Jordan, calling on behalf of Aiden Cosby.”

When I asked who Aiden Cosby was, the caller repeated: “This is Jordan, calling on behalf of Aiden Cosby.” That seemed odd.

When I said I had never heard of Aiden Cosby, the caller said there was some confusion and repeated what he had already said for the third time.

It quickly became obvious that this was a bogus call created by someone who hadn’t thoroughly considered the script possibilities, which is why the A.I. creature at the other end did not have the tools to move the conversation toward whatever their presumably tempting offer was in exchange for my Social Security Number, credit card numbers or other equally valuable information.

So I hung up and blocked the number.

Here’s what you need to know: 

To identify AI phone calls, look for these key signs:

  1. Unnatural speech patterns: AI callers may have robotic or mechanical-sounding speech, lacking natural pauses or inflections
  2. Limited contextual understanding: AI systems might struggle with nuanced conversations, providing responses that feel scripted or disconnected
  3. Repetitive or predictable responses: AI callers often have a limited set of pre-programmed responses, especially for complex questions
  4. Inconsistent audio quality: Listen for sudden changes in audio quality or background noise, which could indicate an AI-generated call
  5. Difficulty with open-ended questions: Try asking complex or open-ended questions to test the system's capabilities
  6. Unusual pauses or delays: AI systems may have slight delays in processing and responding to your questions
  7. Lack of emotional intelligence: AI callers might struggle to understand or respond appropriately to emotional cues

To protect yourself from AI phone scams:

  1. Verify the caller's identity: If suspicious, hang up and call the organization directly using a known, official number
  2. Be cautious of urgent requests: Scammers often create a false sense of urgency
  3. Don't say "Yes": Avoid answering questions that can be answered with "Yes," as scammers may record your voice for fraudulent purposes
  4. Use call-blocking tools: Consider using call-blocking apps or services provided by your phone company
  5. Report suspicious calls: Help others by reporting potential scams to the appropriate authorities

By staying vigilant and following these guidelines, you can better identify AI phone calls and protect yourself from potential scams.

N. Russell Wayne

Weston, CT  06883

203-895-8877

www.soundasset.blogspot.com

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sound Advice: January 3, 2025

2025 Market Forecasts: Stupidity Taken To An Extreme   If you know anything about stock market performance, you can only gag at the nonsense “esteemed forecasters” are now putting forth about the prospective path of stocks in the year ahead.   Our cousins in the UK would call this rubbish.   I would not be as kind. Leading the Ship of Fools is the forecast from the Chief Investment Strategist at Oppenheimer who is looking for a year-end 2025 level for the Standard & Poor’s Index of 7,100, a whopping 21% increase from the most recent standing.   Indeed, most of these folks are looking for double-digit gains.   Only two expect stocks to weaken. In the last 30 years, the market has risen by more than 20% only 15 times.   The exceptional span during that time was 1996-1999, which accounted for four of those jumps.   What followed in 2000 through 2002 was the polar opposite: 2000:      -9.1% 2001:     -11.9% ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Sound Advice: January 15, 2025

Why investors shouldn't pay attention to Wall Street forecasts   Investors shouldn't pay attention to Wall Street forecasts for several compelling reasons: Poor accuracy Wall Street forecasts have a terrible track record of accuracy. Studies show that their predictions are often no better than random chance, with accuracy rates as low as 47%   Some prominent analysts even perform worse, with accuracy ratings as low as 35% Consistent overestimation Analysts consistently overestimate earnings growth, predicting 10-12%                 annual growth when the reality is closer to 6%.   This overoptimism can                 lead investors to make overly aggressive bets in the market. Inability to predict unpredictable events The stock market is influenced by numerous unpredictable factors, including geopolitical events, technological changes, and company-specific news.   Anal...
Post a Comment
Read more

Sound Advice: October 12, 2022

More Pain Ahead? It’s been a difficult year for the investment markets, but tough times have happened before and they will certainly happen again.   Sometimes recoveries are relatively quick and sometimes a hefty dose of patience is required.   No two downdrafts are alike, but the net result is always a rebound to even higher levels than seen before. One of the most uncomfortable stretches over the last half century took place during the oil embargo days of the early and mid-1970s.   Market valuations fell to the high single digits, a level that was about half the historic average.   For investors, this was one of the great sales of all time.   Those who had the courage to get aboard reaped huge rewards. More recent pullbacks of note took place during the dot.com days of the turn of the millennium and the banking crisis of 2008-9.   The former period was marked by what appeared to be investors’ absolute indifference to longstanding measures of reasona...
Post a Comment
Read more