USPS Warns of Scams Using AI to Seem More Realistic
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service has issued a warning that scammers are using AI to make old tricks and cons appear more authentic. The announcement was made to kick off National Consumer Protection Week, highlighting the new threat AI poses to personal security.
Scammers are now using AI-generated photos and voice clones to create more convincing romance, investment, and tech support scams. These tools allow them to build relationships with victims over weeks, making fake emergency requests from what appears to be friends or family seem legitimate and believable. The U.S. Postal Service is the most frequently impersonated brand in smishing scams, accounting for over 15% of such attempts. During the 2023 holiday season, traffic to malicious websites mimicking the USPS nearly matched and sometimes even exceeded the traffic to the official USPS site. This new wave of AI-enhanced scams builds on long-running phishing and smishing schemes. Previously, scammers relied on text messages with suspicious links about package deliveries; now, they can create more personalized and harder-to-detect fakes. The Postal Inspection Service emphasizes that the USPS will never text you to ask for extra payment for a package delivery. The financial toll of these scams is significant, with Americans losing $1.2 billion in 2025 to such schemes. In 2022, delivery-related text scams were the most common type, victimizing 68 million Americans for a total of $326 million. The warning from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service is part of National Consumer Protection Week, which runs from March 1-7, 2026. This initiative, in partnership with the Federal Trade Commission, aims to educate consumers on how to avoid, report, and recover from fraud. One tell-tale sign of an AI-driven scam can be a thin or inconsistent social media footprint for the supposed person contacting you. Other red flags include minor misspellings in website addresses, requests to move conversations to private channels like WhatsApp, and pressure to make quick financial decisions. If you encounter a suspected scam, you can report it to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service at uspis.gov/report. It is also recommended to save all communications with the scammer and contact your bank immediately if any financial information was shared. Signing up for the USPS's "Informed Delivery" service can help you track your legitimate mail and packages.
