ELKHORN, NE. — AI-powered scam calls and text messages are surging across the country, costing Americans billions of dollars, according to a new study from the Better Business Bureau.
Residents and business owners in Elkhorn say they are feeling the effects firsthand.
Amy Anderson, owner of Little Scandinavia in downtown Elkhorn, says she has seen a sharp increase in spam and scam calls over the past three weeks.
"Everything from talking about my health care benefits --- which I don't have, by the way --- offering me discounted groceries, and then, very obviously, AI folks, ..." Anderson said. "I'll answer, then it'll be a long pause, someone clears their throat, or there is a robot that says, 'Please don't hang up.'"
Anderson says the volume of unwanted contact has become a serious disruption.
"It's just really frustrating and a waste of time," Anderson said. "I don't know how to make it stop."
Josh Planos, VP of Marketing, Communications and PR for the Midwest region of the Better Business Bureau, says the tools scammers are using are more accessible than many people realize.
"There is this idea that scammers are breaking into (a) criminal underworld, but really they are renting a lot of the same legitimate tools that everybody else uses," Planos said.
Planos says text scams are more likely to successfully take money from victims over phone call scams.
Planos says he is calling for new regulations to protect consumers, regardless of the dollar amount lost.
"There are a lot more stories out there of people losing $15,000 (or) $700, (but) the amount of money should not dictate the amount of protection," Planos said.
Anderson says she would welcome new regulations.
"I would definitely be interested in that," Anderson said. "I try to always say 'Please take me off your list,' but it doesn't seem like it's working."
Planos says the best way to protect yourself from scams is to turn on your phone's spam filter.
