Princess Leonor Foundation Alerts Public About AI Fraud
A foundation representing Princess Leonor, heir apparent to the Spanish throne, has issued a stern warning regarding the exploitation of artificial intelligence in fraudulent activities.
Scammers are allegedly utilizing AI-generated video depictions of the 20-year-old princess, disseminated through counterfeit profiles, to defraud unsuspecting social media users.
On platforms like TikTok, these impostors post videos under the guise of “Leonor,” enticing users with promises of exorbitant payments reaching thousands of dollars, contingent upon an initial “fee” in the range of a few hundred dollars.
Once victims comply with this initial request, the con artists typically continue to demand additional funds before vanishing into thin air. A screenshot of a fraudulent TikTok video purportedly featuring Princess Leonor.
According to an investigation conducted by El País in 2024, all the telephone numbers employed in these scams trace back to the Dominican Republic. Astonishingly, some of the fraudulent videos have amassed over a million views.
In a cautionary statement, the official website of the Princess of Asturias Foundation declared, “The foundation does not offer any programs for financial assistance, project subsidies, lotteries, or any other monetary schemes aimed at individual citizens.”
Furthermore, it emphasized, “Equally, the Princess of Asturias does not dispense financial aid via the foundation, and any communiqué or profile suggesting otherwise is unequivocally false.”
TikTok’s regulations explicitly prohibit accounts that engage in deceitful practices or attempts to manipulate the platform, including identity impersonation for the purpose of gaining financial or social capital.
However, El País reported that upon raising complaints regarding the hijacking of the princess’s identity, which was first identified in December 2024, the platform responded with a uniform message: “We have concluded that the reported content does not violate our guidelines.”
Princess Leonor, the firstborn of King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia, took on the formal title of heir to the throne—Princess of Asturias, Princess of Girona, Princess of Viana, Duchess of Montblanc, Countess of Cervera, and Lady of Balaguer—following her father’s ascension to the throne after his predecessor’s abdication in 2014.
If she eventually ascends to the throne, Leonor will be the first female monarch in Spain since Queen Isabella II, who ruled from 1833 until her ousting in 1868, and is historically the sole queen to have governed a unified Spain in her own right, rather than through marital alliances.
Leonor pursued her international baccalaureate studies in Glamorgan, Wales, and is set to complete her three years of military training this year in preparation for her future responsibilities as commander-in-chief.
Source link: Theguardian.com.
