AI hoaxes are deceiving 911 dispatchers, and they're only getting harder to detect

Swatters are increasingly using AI technology that creates synthetic voices or sound effects to generate remarkably believable fake emergency calls to law enforcement.

<img src='https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/6000x4000!/quality/85/format/webp/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fde%2Ffc%2Fede4ced14026b5ba1670664965f1%2Fgettyimages-1209898437.jpg' alt='A dispatcher with Anne Arundel County Fire Department answers a 911 emergency call from their department dispatch center in Glen Burnie, Md., in 2020. 911 dispatchers have long dealt with swatting calls, where callers report a bomb threat, mass shooting or some other kind of life-threatening emergency with the intention of initiating a massive emergency response. Now, AI-generated voice calls are posing a new challenge.'/><p>Swatters are increasingly using AI technology that creates synthetic voices or sound effects to generate remarkably believable fake emergency calls to law enforcement.</p><p>(Image credit: Alex Edelman/AFP via Getty Images)</p><img src='https://media.npr.org/include/images/tracking/npr-rss-pixel.png?story=nx-s1-6034449' />