Google suing scammers for fake Bard AI downloading malware

Scammers are taking advantage of unsuspecting online users interested in artificial intelligence (AI) through advertising that steals small businesses’ social media passwords, Google alleges in a lawsuit filed Monday.

“As public excitement in new generative AI tools has increased, scammers are increasingly taking advantage of unsuspecting users,” Google General Counsel Halimah DeLaine Prado wrote in the company’s statement.

The lawsuit alleges hackers in India and Vietnam have been tricking small business owners into clicking on ads that tell users to download its new artificial intelligence chatbot, Bard, which was launched in March.

Bard, which rivals the popular tool ChatGPT, does not need to be downloaded. The ads under scrutiny led users to download malware that compromised their social media accounts, Google said.

Google said they have “filed roughly 300 takedowns” of scams related to the group since April. According to the lawsuit, the scam shows up in the form of ads, pages and posts on Facebook. Users will click to “download” Bard, and the malware will send their account information to the hackers, who will take over the victim’s accounts.

The company said they are filing the lawsuit to stop the scammers from setting up these domains, which will allow the company to have them disabled for U.S. users.

“Google brings this action for trademark infringement and breach of contract to disrupt Defendants’ fraudulent scheme, prevent Defendants from causing further harm to Google’s users, and raise public awareness about Defendants’ misconduct so users can protect themselves,” states the lawsuit, which was filed in the Northern District of California.

“If this is successful, it will serve as a deterrent and provide a clear mechanism for preventing similar scams in the future,” the company’s statement said.

Google also introduced a second lawsuit, which targets the weaponization of copyright law for internet users and creators.

The company said their lawsuits are part of an ongoing legal strategy that aims to protect consumers and small businesses — and to establish necessary legal precedents as technology quickly evolves.

“More broadly, we hope these efforts protect and preserve the unprecedented culture of innovation in the United States,” Google said. “Just as AI fraudsters and copyright scammers hope to fly under the radar — we believe that appropriate legal action and working with government officials puts scammers squarely in the crosshairs of justice, promoting a safer internet for everyone.”