Israel: indictment and police say a 20-year-old used AI-animated ID photos as fake verification videos to open credit cards in at least 33 people's names
According to an indictment filed on 16 July 2026 (date per Maariv), as reported by i24NEWS, a 20-year-old man impersonated at least 33 Israelis over about half a year, obtained credit cards in their names and used them for purchases of about 67,000 shekels in Israel and abroad, with attempted charges of more than 56,000 shekels more. Investigators collected fake identification videos of the victims that, according to the indictment as reported, he created with artificial intelligence and used to pass the card issuers' remote identification. Maariv reports, citing police, that the suspect cut the face photos from identity cards and animated them with AI software so that the card holder appeared to speak the required declarations. A police investigator told Maariv that investigators had to locate more than 50 people whose identities were used and that some victims were frightened when shown the videos of themselves in interrogation rooms. The victims who were questioned denied any connection to the cards. The investigator said most of them did not know their identities were being used and that the credit companies bore the direct financial loss. He was arrested on landing in Israel, did not cooperate with the investigation, and the prosecution asked for his detention until the end of proceedings.
AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 2 sources · Added 13/10/2026