AI‑generated video scam impersonating Caterpillar targets Brazilian investors

Criminals created a fake website that mimics the Caterpillar brand and posted an artificial‑intelligence‑generated video to convince users to ignore bank warnings. The scheme promises almost 8% daily returns from shared equipment rentals and directs victims to transfer money via Brazil’s Pix system.

Security firm ESET identified the fraud, noting that the counterfeit site often adds an extra “R” before the “T” in the company name. ESET researcher Jonathan Ramos said the use of AI to bypass bank alerts represents a new level of persuasion by digital scammers. Victims are asked to provide personal data, such as name, CPF and phone number, before being urged to recruit others, turning the operation into a pyramid scheme. Caterpillar has issued alerts about the fraud but has not responded to media inquiries.