Detecting Phone Scams Before They Strike with AI

Russia’s Beeline has deployed an AI-powered system that spots complex psychological phone‑scam tactics hours — even days — before victims are asked to transfer money.

Russia’s telecom operator VimpelCom (brand name Beeline) has overhauled its fraud‑protection strategy with a new artificial‑intelligence model capable of identifying intricate psychological schemes used by phone scammers. By analyzing patterns of interaction over both medium (several hours) and long‑term (up to five days) timeframes, the system flags suspicious behavior before a customer ever attempts a banking transaction.

Scammers typically spend time gathering personal data — such as whether the target has savings and which bank holds them — and then use social‑engineering techniques to build trust. VimpelCom’s algorithm monitors eight distinct indicators, including communication with unfamiliar contacts and deviations from a user’s normal calling schedule. When a request for a banking operation arises, the AI immediately alerts the operator’s risk‑control team.

Early trials have shown the system can raise the alarm two to three hours before scammers prompt victims to transfer funds. Beyond threat detection, the AI relieves customer‑support teams by automatically triaging incoming calls and identifying high‑risk scenarios well before human intervention is required. The result is a higher level of user security and a significant reduction in financial losses.