I have been a software engineer for a long time and have developed many projects for Scambaiting using FreePBX and Asterisk VoIP servers. I have used Lenny and created custom scripts like Call Flooders, hacks that intercept calls, Caller ID Spoofers, etc.
Lo and Behold I have also created an AI Bot I call Lenny 2.0. Unlike the original Lenny, this Lennt bot is actually interactive and works with ChatGPT. Source code HERE.
An Evolution in Scam-Baiting: From Lenny Bot to AI-Powered Call Interaction
Phone scams are a persistent nuisance, costing individuals and businesses billions of dollars annually. Among the tools to combat this menace, the Lenny Bot has long been a beloved solution. A rudimentary yet effective program, Lenny Bot engages scammers with pre-recorded audio clips of a humorous, perpetually confused character, wasting their time and frustrating their efforts. However, in the age of advanced artificial intelligence, there is a need for a more dynamic, intelligent approach. This is where the new AI-powered scam-baiting script, integrating FreePBX, Python or C++, ChatGPT, and Google Speech-to-Text/Text-to-Speech, emerges as a far superior solution.
Lenny Bot: A Classic but Limited Approach
Lenny Bot operates on a simple premise: play pre-recorded responses to scammers, simulating a conversation that loops indefinitely. While entertaining and effective to a degree, Lenny Bot has significant limitations:
- Static Responses: The bot cannot adapt to the scammer’s responses, often resulting in obvious repetition that shortens engagement.
- No Intelligence: It cannot process or respond to specific inputs, making it less convincing over time.
- Lack of Logging: Lenny Bot offers no built-in mechanism to record or analyze the interaction, missing opportunities for post-call review or potential reporting to authorities.
While Lenny Bot was revolutionary in its time, it was not designed for a world increasingly dominated by sophisticated scammers who can quickly identify static tools.
The AI-Powered Scam-Baiting Script: A New Standard
The new AI-powered scam-baiting script transcends the limitations of Lenny Bot by leveraging cutting-edge technologies like ChatGPT and Google’s Speech-to-Text/Text-to-Speech APIs. It is built on the principles of adaptability, realism, and analysis, making it far more engaging and effective.
Dynamic Conversations
Unlike Lenny Bot’s static responses, this script uses Google Speech-to-Text to transcribe the scammer’s spoken words in real time. These transcriptions are then processed by ChatGPT, which generates contextually appropriate, engaging, and often nonsensical replies. The responses are converted to audio using Google Text-to-Speech, creating an endlessly dynamic loop of conversation.
This adaptability ensures the scammers remain engaged for longer, as they perceive they are talking to a real person. ChatGPT’s natural language processing capabilities make the responses sound convincing, humorous, and sometimes frustratingly cryptic—perfect for wasting scammers’ time.
Enhanced Personalization
One of the standout features of the AI-powered script is its ability to personalize interactions dynamically. For example, if the scammer provides a name, the bot can incorporate it into future responses, making the interaction feel tailored and convincing. This contextual awareness is impossible with static tools like Lenny Bot, where every interaction is identical.
Robust Logging and Analysis
The script includes a detailed logging mechanism that records every interaction. Transcriptions of the scammer’s speech, the bot’s responses, and timestamps are saved for later review. This feature serves multiple purposes:
- Entertainment: Reviewing scam calls can provide endless amusement.
- Reporting: Logs can be shared with authorities or cybersecurity firms to analyze scam patterns and improve prevention measures.
- Improvement: Developers can use the logs to refine the bot’s behavior and responses, ensuring it stays one step ahead of scammers.
Modern AI Integration
By using ChatGPT, the script taps into one of the most advanced AI models available, capable of mimicking human conversation with stunning accuracy. Its flexibility allows it to respond appropriately to a wide variety of inputs, maintaining the illusion of a real conversation for far longer than Lenny Bot ever could.
Additionally, integrating Google’s Speech-to-Text and Text-to-Speech APIs ensures high-quality audio processing, allowing the bot to handle spoken input and output with remarkable clarity.
Endless Engagement
The AI-powered script operates in an infinite loop, continuously analyzing the scammer’s speech and generating fresh responses. This ensures that scammers remain on the line for as long as possible, minimizing the time they can spend targeting real victims. The bot’s ability to introduce humor, confusion, or cryptic logic adds layers of complexity that can frustrate and exhaust even the most persistent scammers.
Why This Script is Superior to Granny AI Bot:
When comparing the AI-powered scam-baiting script to Lenny Bot, the advantages are clear:
- Adaptability: The script tailors responses to each unique interaction, whereas Lenny Bot is confined to a finite set of pre-recorded phrases.
- Realism: ChatGPT’s natural language processing makes the bot’s responses sound human and spontaneous, fooling scammers more effectively.
- Efficiency: By keeping scammers engaged longer, the script reduces their time to target actual victims.
- Entertainment Value: The logged interactions provide endless material for those who enjoy scam-baiting as a hobby or activism.
- Scam Prevention: By analyzing logs, the script contributes to broader efforts to understand and combat scams on a systemic level.
The Lenny Bot holds a special place in the history of scam prevention, but it is a product of its time. As scammers grow more sophisticated, so must the tools used to combat them. This AI-powered scam-baiting script represents a new era, where dynamic interaction, intelligent processing, and robust analysis converge to create a tool that is both highly effective and endlessly entertaining.
By wasting scammers’ time, gathering valuable data, and staying one step ahead, this script not only outclasses Lenny Bot but also sets a gold standard for future anti-scam technologies. Whether for personal use, cybersecurity research, or public good, this project is a leap forward in the ongoing fight against phone scams.
The Granny AI Bot, known as “Daisy,” is an innovative tool developed by Virgin Media O2 to combat phone scammers by engaging them in prolonged, meaningless conversations, thereby diverting their attention from potential victims. Daisy utilizes advanced artificial intelligence to simulate the persona of an elderly woman, making interactions with scammers appear authentic and keeping them occupied for extended periods.
This approach is similar to the previously discussed scam-baiting script that integrates FreePBX with AI technologies like ChatGPT and Google Speech-to-Text/Text-to-Speech. Both systems aim to waste scammers’ time through realistic, dynamic conversations. Here’s how the two systems compare:
1. Dynamic Conversation Generation
- Daisy: Employs a combination of AI models to transcribe incoming scam calls and generate real-time, contextually appropriate responses that mimic human speech patterns.
- FreePBX AI Script: Utilizes Google Speech-to-Text to transcribe the scammer’s speech and ChatGPT to generate responses, which are then converted back to speech using Google Text-to-Speech, facilitating a seamless conversational loop.
2. Personalization and Engagement
- Daisy: Crafted to emulate an elderly persona, Daisy engages scammers with rambling stories about family and hobbies, creating a believable character that scammers might perceive as an easy target.
- FreePBX AI Script: Incorporates dynamic personalization by storing context from the conversation, allowing the AI to reference previous parts of the dialogue, making interactions more convincing and engaging.
3. Operational Deployment
- Daisy: Operates as a centralized system where its phone number is distributed across scammer networks, attracting fraudulent calls and keeping scammers engaged, thereby protecting real customers.
- FreePBX AI Script: Can be deployed on individual phone systems, allowing users to route suspected scam calls to the AI bot, which then handles the interaction, wasting the scammer’s time.
4. Logging and Analysis
- Daisy: While specific details about Daisy’s logging capabilities are not publicly disclosed, it is likely that interactions are monitored to improve AI responses and understand scammer tactics.
- FreePBX AI Script: Includes robust logging features that record conversations for later review, providing valuable data for analyzing scammer behavior and enhancing the system’s effectiveness.
5. Accessibility and Customization
- Daisy: Developed and managed by Virgin Media O2, Daisy is not available for individual deployment but serves as a protective measure for the company’s customer base.
- FreePBX AI Script: Designed for individual users or organizations to implement within their own phone systems, offering flexibility and customization to suit specific needs.
In summary, both Daisy and the FreePBX AI scam-baiting script leverage artificial intelligence to engage scammers in time-wasting conversations, thereby reducing the risk to potential victims. While Daisy operates as a centralized defense mechanism managed by a telecom provider, the FreePBX AI script offers a customizable solution for individual users or organizations, with added features like dynamic personalization and detailed logging for comprehensive scam-baiting and analysis.