Google Sues Chinese Scammers Who Used Gemini for Phishing

Google has filed suit against a group referred to in court documents as Outsider Enterprise. According to the company, the group operates through Telegram and offers phishing services under a “phishing-as-a-service” model — that is, it provides ready-made tools to people who lack the technical skills to build fraudulent sites and text-message campaigns on their own.

According to the filing, Outsider Enterprise posted instructions in its Telegram channels on using Google's Gemini AI model to create sites impersonating Google, YouTube and government organizations — in particular, the New York E-ZPass toll road service.

The group offered its clients nearly 300 ready-made templates for fraudulent campaigns, substantially lowering the barrier to entry for would-be attackers.

The well-known computer security expert Bruce Schneier, commenting on the news on his blog, voiced support for Google's move while noting that he was not convinced of its practical effectiveness.

The case illustrates the growing problem of accessible AI tools being used to automate and scale phishing attacks, as well as the efforts of major technology companies to respond to the abuse of their own services through legal means.

Source: Schneier on Security