The news today is that gullible eBay shoppers have become the victims of a very clever scam in which some Chinese entrepreneurs have used artificial intelligence image-making technology to create photos of pretty flowers which look like cats! They been advertised on eBay and as you can imagine some people have been taken in because they are unaware of the powers of AI image making technology.
The plants are described as rare and organic and the images have been circulating all over social media. As you can see they look very interesting, enticing, mesmerising almost particularly if you like cats.
But if you know about the power of AI image generation you would know immediately that these are fake. They might have been created manually through photo editing but it would require a very skilled operative to achieve the results.
Perhaps they used both AI and photo editing combined. I tried to create a similar image myself using the best available artificial intelligence image creator. DALL-E 3 and was unable to create the kind of image you see here.
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I managed to create the image above which isn’t bad but is not quite the same thing. I asked the AI computer to create an image of a “cat-rose”.
Previously I had instructed the computer in different ways but failed to achieve the result that I was seeking.
This latest scam is just yet one more example of how artificial intelligence is invading our lives. It’s going to be a very big problem and probably is already. Like all things, AI can be used for good or bad purposes. The film Oppenheimer comes to mind and the creation of the atomic bomb.
It isn’t just about images because AI can be used in all aspects of our lives and social media is a great platform to exploit for AI users. A lot of social media users are not very savvy about tech. I am not being critical. But there is a far bit of naivity on social media which is ripe with scams.
Take Facebook marketplace for instance where a lot of the items for sale are stolen! Anyway, that is a different topic.
Some more on the flower-cat scam
There has been a recent scam involving fake ‘cat’s eye dazzle’ seeds from China that were advertised on eBay. Here are the details:
The Scam: Scammers have been selling seeds online, claiming that they will grow into beautiful flowers resembling cute cats. The product listings feature AI-generated photos that depict these imaginary flowers. In reality, no such plant exists. The seeds are described as ‘rare,’ ‘organic,’ and ‘non-GMO.’ The scammers have been selling these fake seeds for more than $45 (£35) per packet .
How the Scam Works:
- Unsuspecting buyers come across listings for “Cat Eye Dazzle” seeds on platforms like eBay.
- The images in these listings show flowers with cat-like faces, which attract attention.
- Buyers purchase the seeds, hoping to grow these unique and adorable flowers.
- However, the seeds are entirely fake, and no legitimate records exist for any flowers or plants named “cat’s eye dazzle”.
AI Detection and Confirmation:
- Fact-checkers at Snopes investigated the scam.
- They used AI-detection tools on websites like aiornot.com and isitai.com to confirm that the images were indeed created by artificial intelligence.
- Additionally, Google data shows that there were no prior records of any real flowers or plants with the name “cat’s eye dazzle”.
Social Media Impact:
- The fake images circulated widely on social media platforms, including Facebook and Reddit.
- Many users expressed interest in buying the seeds, unaware of the scam.
- Completed or sold listings on eBay reached prices exceeding $45 (£35).
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