Thai Prime Minister Patton Tan raised the issue of artificial intelligence (AI) fraud on the same day when outlining the country’s policies and guidelines for the 2026 fiscal year, the Bangkok Post reported Monday, “I was almost fooled by fraudsters who used the voice of a fake foreign leader to contact me,” he said. The incident sparked immediate discussion among netizens.
On the 15th, Petuntan revealed at a conference that he had personally experienced a fraud created by using artificial intelligence technology. Photograph: Thai media
“At first they contacted me via Voice Mail and asked me how I was, and then they said they wanted to work with me,” ms. Pettontan recalled, “As a courtesy, I won’t say which country it is. The voice on the phone sounds very similar to that of the leader.” They said they would contact her again. At around 11 p. m. , the scammers called Ms. Pettontan via the same chat app, but she was off duty. The next morning, when he realized he had missed the call, Ms. Pettontan apologized and asked when it would be convenient to call again. So the scammers sent her a voice clip asking her to make a donation to a cause on Thailand’s behalf, and falsely claimed that Thailand was the only ASEAN country that had not made a donation. “The voicemail made me realise I had been tricked into giving a bank account number that didn’t belong to the country.”
Ms Pettontan stresses that wire fraud is now so sophisticated that anyone can be a victim. She called on the public to be vigilant, and said the government would attach great importance to telecom fraud, intensify the fight against it, and effectively protect citizens’ information and property security.
One commenter said: “This is worrying. Even the prime minister can’t avoid being targeted by fraudsters. Is there any real security left? “It’s scary how far technology has come. We need better cybersecurity regulation and more comprehensive cybersecurity education.” Others praised Petuntan’s handling of the situation, i’m surprised she handled it so well! Not everyone can spot a scam in time and keep their cool.