A call or voicemail sounds exactly like your child, grandchild or friend, and they need money right now. Here's how to tell it's fake — and what to do.
The family emergency scam is old: someone calls pretending to be a grandchild in jail, in a crash or stuck abroad, and asks for money fast. What's new is the voice. The FTC says some scammers now use AI voice cloning, made from a short audio clip, to sound like your relative. (FTC) The FBI has warned since 2024 that criminals generate short audio clips containing a loved one's voice to impersonate a close relative in a crisis. (FBI IC3)
Got a message like this? Check it in seconds.
Check it with ShieldrIt's still happening this fall. In early October 2026, an Orlando woman told News 6 she handed thousands of dollars in cash to a courier after a call in what sounded like her friend's voice, saying he was in jail after a crash; the friend was fine and knew nothing about it. News 6 noted it hasn't confirmed how the voice was produced. (WKMG News 6) In September 2026, the FBI also warned that impersonation scammers use AI, including video calls, to look and sound like real officials. (FBI IC3)
Most of the time it's a phone call. Sometimes it's a voicemail, and sometimes it starts or continues by text. The story is built to make you panic and act before you think: an arrest, a car crash, a hospital, a kidnapping. A voicemail might sound like this:
The FTC says some scammers pose as an authority figure instead — a lawyer, a police officer or a doctor; in the Orlando case, a second caller claimed to be the friend's public defender. (FTC) The scammer may know your name, where you live or family details from social media or a hacked email, or may simply guess. Then comes the payment request: the FTC says these scammers always say you have to pay right away, by wiring money through a company like Western Union or MoneyGram, sending cryptocurrency, using a payment app, or buying gift cards and reading out the numbers. In the Orlando case, couriers came to the victim's home to pick up cash.
A related version arrives by text. The FBI says “virtual kidnappers” text a claim that a relative has been taken and send a photo or video as “proof of life” — often altered from pictures on social media — sometimes in messages that disappear quickly so you can't study them. (FBI)
A familiar voice is no longer proof of who is calling. The FTC's advice is simple: don't trust the voice alone. Call the person who supposedly contacted you, on a number you already know is theirs — not one the caller gives you — and check the story. If you can't reach them, try another family member or their friends. (FTC) The FBI says the same about kidnapping claims: always try to contact your loved one before considering any payment. (FBI)
And a genuine bail situation doesn't work like this either: FBI Miami told News 6 that law enforcement would not contact a relative to collect bail money for a loved one.
Move fast — the FTC says that no matter how you paid, the sooner you act, the better. Its advice by payment type: (FTC)
If the person targeted is 60 or older and needs help filing a report, the FBI points to the Justice Department's Elder Justice Hotline at 1-833-FRAUD-11 (833-372-8311). (FBI IC3) Be wary of anyone who then contacts you offering to recover the money for a fee — the FBI warns that scammers target past victims this way too.
Share the voicemail, text, email or screenshot to Shieldr. Voicemails are transcribed, then judged, and you get a plain-English verdict — safe, suspicious or scam — with a one-sentence reason. It can't listen to a live call, and it's one more check, not a guarantee: always call your loved one back on a number you know.
Get Shieldr on the App StoreYes. The FTC says some family emergency scammers use AI voice cloning made from a short audio clip, and the FBI warns that criminals generate short clips of a loved one's voice to impersonate them in a crisis. That's why a familiar voice alone doesn't prove who is calling.
Hang up and call them on a number you already know is theirs, not one the caller gives you. If you can't reach them, call another relative or a friend who can. A family code word, which the FBI recommends, makes this faster.
Report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and to your state attorney general, and file a complaint at ic3.gov. If a text was part of it, forward the text to 7726. If you handed cash to a courier, also call your local police.
Related: the “Hi Mom, this is my new number” text scam, the text-message cousin of this scam; the jury duty scam, another call that uses an arrest threat and fake officials; and the fake police “warrant for your arrest” call. Worried about an older relative? See how to help a parent avoid phone scams.