Commonwealth Bank of Australia Deploys AI Bots to Combat Scams

Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has announced a new strategy in its fight against scams, leveraging thousands of AI-powered bot profiles to engage with and disrupt scam operations. These bots are deployed by Apate.ai, a cyber-intelligence firm that spun out of Macquarie University.

According to CBA, the AI bots are engineered to engage scammers through text-based conversations and voice calls, gathering intelligence and disrupting their activities. This bot network builds on a successful pilot program announced by Macquarie University in late 2024. Dali Kaafar, CEO and founder of Apate.ai, described their system as a "honeypot" strategy. He explained, "In collaboration with our telco partners, Apate.ai operates a vast and constantly growing network of dedicated telephone numbers connected to the telcos networks and designed specifically to be discovered and targeted by scammers. When a scammer dials or messages one of these numbers, they actually engage in conversations with one of our AI-powered bots and not a person."

The bank anticipates that by diverting scammers' time and resources, this AI-powered approach will help protect Australians from financial harm. The intelligence gathered from these interactions is intended to provide near real-time insights into evolving scam tactics, allowing CBA to enhance its scam control systems.