November 7, 2026
There are rapid developments in the financial crimes sector, as penetrating banking systems is no longer a prerequisite for seizing corporate funds. Rather, fraudsters can now access millions of dollars via a single phone call that relies on cloning the voices and images of executives using “deepfake” techniques supported by artificial intelligence, without the employee realizing that he is dealing with an artificial personality.
In this context, the US Department of Justice announced on November 5, 2026, that it had formally charged three people with implementing an international fraud network that targeted hospital institutions, banks, and financial technology companies around the world between 2024 and 2026. According to the prosecution, the defendants used artificial intelligence techniques to clone the voices and images of CEOs and lawyers, to convince accounting employees to transfer sums of money amounting to about $129 million under the cover of fictitious deals that required confidentiality, so that the money would later be transferred into cryptocurrencies to hide its path.
Although this case has not yet been judicially resolved, and there is no data confirming the involvement of Lebanese companies in it, the method used opens the door to discussion about the extent of the readiness of institutions in Lebanon to confront this type of threat. The danger lies in the simplicity of the mechanism that targets accounting offices, such as an employee receiving a video call from his manager who is outside the country requesting that an urgent sum be transferred to a new account, with a complete match in the audio and video. Another fraudster may even impersonate a lawyer to confirm the story, which leaves the employee in front of multiple false sources that appear completely realistic.
To meet this growing challenge, companies do not necessarily need expensive technical systems, but rather strict financial and administrative procedures. At the forefront of these measures is the adoption of a “secret verification word” that is used exclusively for exceptional requests, in addition to prohibiting the implementation of any transfers based on a single call, no matter how reliable the caller appears, and obliging employees to verify via a second, independent communication channel using pre-established numbers.
Necessary safeguards also include imposing double approval for large transfers, setting clear financial limits, and independently verifying any modifications to supplier accounts. Requests for absolute confidentiality and pressure to accelerate implementation must also be considered as risk indicators that require additional scrutiny, with emphasis on the importance of acting quickly when any fraud is discovered by communicating immediately with the banks and competent authorities to try to recover the funds.
The experience concludes that human trust alone is no longer sufficient in the contemporary work environment. In an era in which artificial intelligence can simulate leaders in voice and video, any communication alone is no longer sufficient to move money without independent audit and verification.
