Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CommBank) unveiled a new weapon in the fight against scams: a fleet of thousands of AI-powered bot profiles, deployed by Apate.ai – a cyber-intelligence firm and spin-out from Macquarie University.
These AI-bots are engineered to engage scammers, gather critical intelligence and disrupt scam operations – with “near real-time scam intelligence harnessed by CommBank to safeguard both our customers and the wider Australian community.”
James Roberts, CommBank’s General Manager of Group Fraud said:
“Scammers are increasingly using AI to target Australians – we’re turning the tables by using AI to fight back. Every minute a scammer is engaging with a bot, is a minute they’re not targeting an Australian. The near real-time intelligence being gathered is a game-changer in how we help to protect our customers and the broader community.”
Every day, Apate.ai deploys thousands of “conversational AI bots to disrupt scammers targeting unsuspecting Australians, via text-based conversations and voice calls.”
This expanded and increasingly sophisticated bot network “follows a successful pilot program announced by Macquarie University in late 2024.”
When a scammer calls or texts, sophisticated bots “engage them in extended conversations, gather intelligence, and feed near real-time insights directly into CommBank’s scam control systems and the broader cross-sector anti-scam ecosystem.”
Professor Dali Kaafar, CEO & Founder of Apate.ai. said:
“We’re on a mission to dismantle the business models of scammers around the world. Our bots share near real-time intelligence to our partners like CommBank to fight scams, helping to shield consumers and businesses and making it harder for scammers to operate.”
Professor Kaafar noted:
“Our system is based on a “Honeypot” strategy. In collaboration with our telco partners, Apate.ai operates a vast and constantly growing network of dedicated telephone numbers connected to the telcos networks and designed specifically to be discovered and targeted by scammers. When a scammer dials or messages one of these numbers, they actually engage in conversations with one of our AI-powered bots and not a person,”
Mr Roberts emphasised that protecting Australians from scams requires a united, cross-sector approach.
“At CommBank, we’re focused on investing in innovative technologies to help combat scams and strengthen Australia’s broader anti-scam ecosystem. Our initiatives focus on enhancing cybersecurity, raising public awareness, and collaborating with industry leaders to build a safer digital environment for all Australians.”
In 2024, phone scams accounted for the “highest overall financial losses and were more likely to result in significant individual losses, according to National Anti-Scams Centre data about contact methods used by scammers.”
During the same period, text messages “were the second most common contact method used by scammers, with investment scams responsible for the highest losses via this channel.”
CommBank is using intelligence gathered “by Apate.ai in near real-time to help protect our customers and the broader Australian community.”
This intelligence helps CommBank to identify “emerging scam trends, enhance the Bank’s scam detection capabilities, and support coordinated efforts across the industry to disrupt scam operations.”
Professor Kaafar added:
“We’ve designed our bots to be difficult to detect by scammers, making them incredibly effective at gathering intelligence and disrupting scam operations. The bots are uniquely crafted with diverse identities – varying in gender, age, tone, and cultural nuance – and fine-tuned with Australian slang and humour to improve realism.”
As cybercriminals increasingly leverage AI to refine their tactics, CommBank is focused on “harnessing AI-driven security measures to help detect and prevent scams – further strengthening protections for customers.”
CommBank’s initiative forms part of a “broader, cross-industry effort to make Australia a more difficult target for scammers.”
The Bank is working closely with “telecommunication providers, big tech, and government agencies to share intelligence and coordinate responses.”