Australian Security Firm Apate Deploys ~350,000 AI Bots to Counter Phone Scams

Australian security firm Apate has developed an AI-based system to combat the rising number of phone scams. According to German tech media outlet t3n, the system deploys approximately 350,000 AI bots that specifically answer calls from scammers or respond to suspicious messages via instant messaging apps.

The core strategy of these bots is "time-wasting." They mimic various personalities and behavioral patterns, giving scammers false hope that they are about to succeed or that the target is vulnerable, thereby inducing them to invest more time. Dali Kafaar, CEO of Apate, told Wired magazine: "We hope we have built the perfect victims for scammers. Every minute a scammer spends talking to a bot is a minute that potentially protects hundreds, if not thousands, of people from being contacted by the same person."

Beyond consuming scammers' time, these AI agents also infiltrate online scam groups to collect information about criminals and their bank accounts. Kafaar stated that the tools have already gathered over 250,000 pieces of intelligence regarding fraudulent activities and responsible individuals. However, facing the global volume of approximately 68 billion scam calls per year (data from Truecaller), the scale of 350,000 bots remains negligible, and the current primary function is disruption and intelligence gathering rather than completely stopping scam operations.