Google Joins the Fight Against Fraud

Google recently announced that it was filing two suits[1] against fraud groups that are using Gemini, Google’s AI platform, to create legitimate looking websites designed to trick users into providing their credit card information.  The suits were filed in a Manhattan federal court against unknown individuals listed as “Does 1-25.”

The first suit is against a threat group known as “Lighthouse,” while the second action is a RICO claim against a group known as “Outsider.”

Regarding Lighthouse, Google alleges that the group’s software was used to mimic government institutions, financial entities, and even the United States Post Office.  Google alleges that “[i]n a 20-day period, approximately 200,000 fraudulent websites created by Lighthouse using Gemini were used to attract ‘well over 1,000,000 potential victims’ in at least 121 countries.”

The suit against Outsider claims the threat group has created a turnkey software to publish fraudulent websites to “rob victims and enrich themselves.”  Google alleges that phishing attacks using AI software have increased fourteenfold and now account for the majority of phishing attacks.[2]  The group offers more than 290 pre-built templates to perpetrate the fraud, making the attacks almost effortless.  The platform also offers real-time keystroke logging and a dashboard to report the effectiveness of the phishing campaign.

The suits were due to the large increase in the number of attacks and the effectiveness of the attacks.  Google alleges that “[i]n the five-month period from November 14, 2025, to April 14, 2026, alone, Google detected more than 1.59 million URLs linked to the Outsider Enterprise.”

The entry of Google into the fight against fraud is great news for consumers.  The FBI reported that more than 22,000 complaints involving AI-related information, with losses from these hitting more than $893 million.[3]