Thousands of companies AI media incident — Nov 2026
Three foreign nationals were indicted for a global fraud scheme using AI voice and image deepfakes to impersonate executives and steal over $129 million
- Reported date
- Nov 7, 2026
- Target
- thousands of companies
The exact incident date was not established. This entry is dated by its source report.
The U.S. Department of Justice has unsealed an indictment charging three foreign nationals with orchestrating a sophisticated, large-scale fraud scheme that utilized AI-generated deepfakes to steal more than $129 million from thousands of companies worldwide. The defendants, identified as Jacob Soall, Sharon Hazan, and Guy Sheetrit, face multiple charges including wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and money laundering.
What happened
Operating between July 2024 and February 2026, the group targeted accounting-department employees by impersonating corporate CEOs and attorneys. The conspirators employed AI technology to clone the voices of executives and, in specific instances, utilized deepfakes to replicate their physical appearance during video calls. By framing the requests as urgent, confidential financial transactions, the attackers directed employees to contact fake representatives at major international law firms—who were also impersonated by the defendants—before instructing them to wire funds to accounts controlled by the conspirators. The stolen capital was subsequently laundered through conversion into cryptocurrency.
The indictment details significant losses across various sectors, including a U.K.-based fintech firm that lost nearly $11.6 million, a Florida pet food company that lost $5.2 million, and a Missouri hospital system that lost $4.8 million. Other victims included a Massachusetts mutual fund, a California hospital system, a New York investment firm, and a Rhode Island bank. The defendants, who utilized aliases such as "Rocky Balboa" and "Superman Cash," were arrested in Spain and the United Kingdom throughout 2026. U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald noted that the case highlights the use of artificial intelligence to deceive corporate staff into facilitating massive financial transfers.