Deepfake Scam Hits Malta: AI Videos and Fake News Exploit Maltese Ministers in Fraudulent Scheme NethertoxAGENT

Just hours after Malta’s Budget Day, a wave of fraudulent articles featuring deepfake videos of Maltese ministers promoting a bogus trading scheme has flooded local social media platforms.

According to the Times of Malta, the scam articles falsely claim to be published by the news outlet and feature fabricated interviews with ministers endorsing an AI-powered investment platform called NethertoxAGENT. The scheme promises people a weekly return of €850 from a one-time €215 investment.

Several articles include deepfake footage of Silvio Schembri, Minister for the Economy, Enterprise and Strategic Projects, with a convincingly altered voice. In one piece, Schembri is shown being interviewed about NethertoxAGENT by supposed journalists from MaltaToday, Newsbook, The Malta Independent, and TVM.

The same article falsely attributes testimonials to prominent financial figures, including a former Central Bank governor, the current MFSA CEO, and the president of Lombard Bank, complete with real photographs to boost credibility. Logos of major Maltese companies like Tumas Group and AX, as well as state entities, are also misused to suggest institutional backing.

Other scam posts feature additional political figures, including Clyde Caruana, Ian Borg, Robert Abela, and Roberta Metsola. The fraudulent content is hosted on deceptive domains such as sicilyunwrapped.com, rather than legitimate Maltese media URLs.

One article even misuses a photo of Labour MP Rosianne Cutajar, falsely portraying her as “Claire,” a Mosta shopkeeper who claims the scheme helped pay her son’s university fees.

These tactics underscore the growing sophistication of deepfake-driven investment scams. Authorities have raised concerns as online fraud continues to plague Malta, with a recent study revealing that over 40% of the country’s top earners have fallen victim to such schemes.

Investment scams exploiting deepfake technology are also sprawling in India. Just two days ago, the Press Information Bureau (PIB) debunked a fraudulent ‘₹60,000-a-day’ investment scheme and exposed another deepfake video falsely featuring Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.