Mobile network O2 hires 'dAIsy' the artificial granny to waste phone scammers' time

[Orange]

This sweet old granny is no pushover. In fact, she was born to give swindlers a taste of their own medicine. Created by UK mobile carrier Virgin Media O2, ‘Daisy’ (dAIsy, get it?) is an AI-powered chatbot designed to combat phone scams by keeping fraudsters on the line for as long as possible.

 

Masquerading as a lovely, slightly befuddled grandmother, Daisy knows just how to drag out a conversation, ensuring scammers waste their time instead of targeting real people.

 

Daisy adopts the persona of an elderly woman, a demographic that scammers often see as easy prey. But instead of being tricked, Daisy turns the tables, engaging them in a seemingly endless discussion about family, hobbies, and mundane details. The goal is to waste the scammer’s time—time that could otherwise be spent preying on actual victims. O2 reports that Daisy has managed to keep scammers on the phone for up to 40 minutes, frustrating them with her rambling stories and technological “mishaps.”

 

 

Quote

 

Scammer: It’s nearly been an hour. For the love of ***.

 

Daisy: Gosh, how time flies.

 

 

The development of Daisy is part of Virgin Media O2’s Swerve the Scammers campaign, which aims to protect customers while raising awareness about fraud. This initiative is backed by research showing that 71% of Brits would love to get back at scammers but don’t want to waste their own time doing it. That’s where Daisy steps in, using a blend of AI models to listen and respond in real time, and proving to be so convincing that scammers believe they’re talking to someone’s grandma.

 

O2 partnered with well-known YouTube scambaiter Jim Browning to make Daisy as effective as possible. Browning’s expertise in exposing fraud schemes helped shape the AI’s dialogue and responses. The campaign also involves Amy Hart, a Love Island star who once fell victim to a scam herself. Hart worked with Daisy to create a video that shows her taking on the scammers, providing a personal angle to the anti-fraud effort.

 

During International Fraud Awareness Week this November, Daisy regaled malicious callers with stories about her love for knitting and her family, and even gave out made-up bank details to lead them on.

 

 

By engaging criminals and playing into their biases about older people, Daisy has done more than just waste their time—she’s exposed the common tactics used, helping real customers learn how to protect themselves.

 

Murray Mackenzie, director of fraud at Virgin Media O2, summed it up well: “[Daisy] is turning the tables on scammers—outsmarting and outmaneuvering them at their own cruel game simply by keeping them on the line,” He added that while scammers might sound convincing, they “aren’t always who you think they are.” 

 

 With fraud call centers operating at full speed, vigilance is key. O2 encourages everyone to report suspicious calls by texting the number to 7726 (SPAM) for free.

 

• https://www.phonearena.com/news/daisy-carrier-ai-chatbot-scammers_id165045 
• https://www.forbes.com/sites/lesliekatz/2024/11/15/introducing-daisy-an-ai-granny-outwitting-scammers-one-call-at-a-time/ 
• https://www.theregister.com/2024/11/15/o2_ai_granny/ 
• https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14080333/AI-granny-Daisy-phone-scammers.html 
• https://www.thetimes.com/uk/technology-uk/article/ai-grandma-scammers-fraud-bnql539wp 

 

Images: O2