Texas Man With Disability Targeted by Scammer Impersonating Cody Johnson and Chris Young

Even before the rise of AI, scammers found unique ways to trick people out of money. For a time, they pretended to be debt collectors or even the United States government. Then they switched to posing as fraud detection from different banks. But as their tactics changed, so did technology. Now able to steal a celebrity’s likeness thanks to AI, it seems that one Texas man was scammed out of an undisclosed amount when thieves posed as Cody Johnson and Chris Young. 

Videos by American Songwriter

There have been countless stories reported on about the dangers of online scams. For users on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, they can find themselves talking to their favorite singers. The only problem – the majority of the time, that singer is a scammer. Although the conversation might start casually, experts claim that after trust is built, the imposter will ask for sensitive information like Social Security numbers or banking information. 

Some scammers will even play with the emotions of fans, telling them they were broke, needed food, or had started to fall in love with them. It might sound crazy to some, but one woman sent a scammer pretending to be Vince Gill $350,000.

As for the last victim, Anthony McAlfney believed he was speaking with both Young and Johnson. A fan of both singers, McAlfney thought he was the luckiest fan alive. Suffering from an intellectual disability, McAlfney saw no warning signs from the conversations. But eventually, the scammers needed some financial help. 

[RELATED: Cody Johnson Aims To Break George Strait’s Record for Most Performances at Rodeo Houston]

Cody Johnson Warns Fans About Online Scammers

Offering to help the singers, McAlfney recalled the information they requested from him. “When I started talking to them, they would ask my age. They would ask for my Social Security information, disability information, bank information.” 

Thankfully, McAlfney’s family learned about the scammers and quickly intervened. Although not sharing the amount that was stolen, the family put safeguards in place to closely monitor the man’s online activity. 

Not the first time a scammer acted as Johnson, the country singer’s team put a warning out to fans as fake accounts continued to surface. “We’ve been made aware of fake accounts and individuals pretending to be Cody Johnson on social media. Please know Cody Johnson and his team members will NEVER ask you for money, gift cards or personal information—not in messages, comments, on the phone or via text message.”

With scammers growing more sophisticated, fans are urged to remain vigilant and skeptical of any celebrity account asking for personal or financial information.

(Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for CMA)