The Hallmark Channel stars have issued a stark warning to fans urging them to be wary of scammers impersonating them.
Actors including Andrew Walker, Jonathan Bennett, Tyler Hynes, and Tamera Mowry appeared in a video posted in which they called out the ‘industry-wide’ deep fake problem.
In the clip, they also stressed to fans that they would never ask them for financial help, donations or to meet up in real life.
‘There’s a growing industry-wide problem across social media,’ Walker, 46, said.
‘Fake accounts have been impersonating actors and reaching out to fans directly with misleading messages,’ the rest of the cast continued.
‘If you receive a message like this, it’s a scam. Please block the account and report it to the social media platform immediately.’
They concluded the video by imploring viewers to stay safe and stay connected.
‘We love our Hallmark family — and that means doing our part to raise awareness around scammers, some who are impersonating Hallmark stars,’ the caption read.
The Hallmark Channel stars have warned fans to be wary of scammers impersonating them. In a video posted to social media they called out the ‘industry-wide’ deep fake problem
The famous faces stressed to fans that they would never ask them for financial help
‘Learn how to spot the signs and protect yourself.’
Social media users applauded the warning and voiced their appreciation.
One commented: ‘You are all amazing! Always caring about your fans and wanting to keep us safe.’
‘This is so sweet and it shows that they care and Hallmark cares,’ another said.
A third continued: ‘Thank you so much for this! It’s crazy that it needs to be said over and over!’
Artificial intelligence has made impersonation scams easier to create, especially as deepfake technology is used to alter a person’s appearance to pretend to be someone else.
Amid the rising tide of impersonation scams and sophisticated deepfake technology, it’s easy to despair of ever keeping the cyber criminals at bay.
In July, Daily Mail reported how a British man revealed he was cruelly conned out of $267 by what he believed was a heartfelt message from Friends icon Jennifer Aniston.
A British man was scammed out of $267 by an a fake Jennifer Aniston account
Paul Davis, 43, fell victim to a disturbing new wave of artificial intelligence scams after being bombarded with messages from deepfake celebrity accounts on social media.
The unemployed man, who suffers from depression, said he was ‘relentlessly’ targeted by AI-generated videos – including ones that appeared to feature Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk and even the beloved sitcom star Jennifer herself.
In one particularly cruel twist, Paul was sent an image of what looked like Jennifer’s driving license, before she told him she ‘loves him’ and asked for money.
He said: ‘I’ve got fake videos from Jennifer Aniston asking me for £200 ($267) and saying she loves me.’
Tragically, Paul believed the message was real – and sent the money in the form of non-refundable Apple gift cards…
‘I was bitten. Once bitten, twice shy,’ he added.
