Scammers target children with fake TV auditions and sexually explicit scripts
The audition takes a disturbing turn.
Image by Cybernews
- A fake casting email asked children to audition for a non-existent show called Nina’s Summer.
- The audition script included sexually explicit content and falsely appeared linked to Dutch public broadcaster NPO.
- NPO Zapp says the emails came from an unrelated domain and has contacted police.
- The broadcaster urges recipients not to respond and to report the emails to police.
Key Takeaways by nexos.ai, reviewed by Cybernews staff.
A Dutch TV station is warning parents and teenagers about a misleading email that’s been circulating, in which people are asked if they would like to participate in a non-existent children’s series with a sexually explicit script.
The email calls for applicants to submit an audition tape based on a script that discusses sexual acts. The fake show was supposed to be called Nina’s Summer.
According to NPO, someone is trying to impersonate a Dutch public broadcaster employee.
The emails were sent from the @zappnpo.nl domain. Although this may look legitimate, they have no connection to the public broadcaster at all.
NPO Zapp, a television channel that targets children between 6 and 12 years old, was alerted to the emails by a few observant parents and children. The NPO says it has contacted the police and is urging recipients of the emails to do the same.
“NPO Zapp is shocked by this incident. It’s crucial that children and young people be protected from these kinds of practices. We urge recipients not to respond to these types of messages and to contact the police,” the Dutch TV station says in a press release.
Earlier this month, a 37-year-old man from Ohio was sentenced to 15 years in prison for creating fake sexual images with AI and sextortion.
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The defendant copied their faces onto the bodies of other adults or children and created videos that depicted the boys having sex. The suspect specifically created videos of the boys having sex with their mothers or grandmothers.
The Ohio man had installed more than 24 AI platforms and more than 100 AI web-based models on his phone. He used this software to create over 700 images, which were posted on a website dedicated to child sexual abuse and violence. Police also found an additional 2,400 deepfake images and videos on his phone.
