An Arizona family was terrified a few months ago when what they thought was a kidnapping and ransom call turned out to be a total scam created by artificial intelligence. As reports grow of scam calls that sound identical to loved ones, many fear that AI could be weaponized to threaten people with technology that’s easy to access and only requires a small fee, several minutes and a stable internet connection.
Jennifer DeStefano received an anonymous call one January afternoon while her 15-year-old daughter was out of town for a ski race. DeStefano heard her daughter answer the phone, panicking and screaming, quickly followed by a man’s voice threatening to drug and kidnap DeStefano’s daughter unless he was sent $1 million, CNN reported.
DeStefano was able to reach her daughter a few minutes later, who was fine and puzzled about what had happened, because she hadn’t been abducted and wasn’t involved in the ransom call. Emergency responders helped the family identify the call as a hoax that uses AI.
BY ANISHA KOHLI APRIL 29, 2023 4:33 PM EDT
全文連結：https://time.com/6275794/ai-voice-cloning-scams-music/
單字
1. weaponize [ˈwep.ən.aɪz] vt. 將……變為武器
The media has the power to weaponize information, manipulating public opinion and driving political agendas.
媒體具有將資訊化為武器、操縱群眾意見以及驅動政治議程的能力。
2. access [ˈæk.ses] vt. 使用；存取；接近
In today's digital age, it is crucial to be able to access a wide range of online resources in order to stay informed and competitive in the global marketplace.
在當今的數位時代，為了在全球市場上跟上潮流並保持競爭力，能獲得廣泛的線上資源是很重要的。
3. puzzled [ˈpʌz.əld] adj. 迷惑的，感到不解的
After reading the confusing instructions, the students were puzzled and unsure about how to complete the assignment.
在讀完不明不白的指示後，學生感到困惑，不確定要怎麼完成作業。
4. abduct [æbˈdʌkt] vt. 劫持；綁架；誘拐
The police suspected that the notorious gang had attempted to abduct the wealthy businessman for ransom.
警方懷疑惡名昭彰的幫派企圖劫持附有的生意人以索求贖金。
片語
1. turn out 結果是（尤指出乎意料的結果）；最後發現
After weeks of planning and preparation, the event turned out to be a huge success, exceeding all our expectations.
經過了數週的策劃與準備，這次活動結果圓滿成功，出乎所有人的預期。
2. involved in 涉入；捲入；參與其中
As a person who values their personal time and space, I prefer not to get involved in other people's drama and conflicts.
作為一個重視個人時間與私人空間的人，我不習慣涉入其他人的紛爭與衝突之間。
3. be able to 能夠
Having worked hard for several years, I was able to secure a promotion to a management position in my company.
經過幾年的努力工作，我成功地晉升至公司的管理職位。
句型
1. fear that 恐怕；擔憂
fear本身可以當作名詞或是動詞使用，意為「害怕、；恐怕；擔心」。本文中的fear當作動詞使用，當作動詞使用時後面通常加上that子句。
As a responsible citizen, I fear that the government's failure to address climate change will have catastrophic consequences for future generations.
作為一名負責任的公民，我擔憂政府無法處理氣候變遷問題，將會為未來的世代帶來災難性的後果。
2. followed by 接著
followed by表示了一種先後關係，若兩件事情A與B的關係為A followed by B，則表示A先發生，B接著A之後發生。
After finishing his presentation, the speaker invited questions from the audience, followed by a lively debate on the topic.
在他的發表結束之後，講者邀請觀眾提出問題，隨後他們針對主題展開了一場激烈的爭論。
文法點
1. 分詞構句
分詞構句的作用是為了簡化單句，當兩句話之間的主詞有重複時，可以省去其中一個主詞，將被省略主詞後方的動詞，改為分詞片語，也就是Ving或V-ed，並刪去兩句之間的連接詞。
文中“DeStefano heard her daughter answer the phone, panicking and screaming…” 即是使用分詞片語panicking和screaming表示上一句的女兒接聽電話後的狀況，省去了重複提及女兒的必要。