AI-powered scams drive up everyday shopping costs

Artificial intelligence is no longer just changing how people work and shop. It is also reshaping the world of online crime, with growing consequences for small businesses and their customers. What once felt like an occasional inconvenience is now becoming a hidden cost that many shoppers unknowingly absorb.

As criminals adopt AI tools to scale and sharpen their scams, businesses are facing losses that are harder to prevent and recover. New research suggests these costs are increasingly being passed on to consumers through higher prices, added fees, or reduced services, even when buyers have done nothing wrong.

AI scams are becoming harder to spot

A recent survey by the Identity Theft Resource Centre shows how deeply cybercrime has taken hold among small businesses. Four out of five firms said they had suffered a cyber scam or data breach in the past year, highlighting just how common these attacks have become. Among those affected, 41 per cent said artificial intelligence played a direct role in their most recent incident.

The growing concern is not only the number of scams, but how realistic they appear. AI is helping criminals write emails, invoices and messages that closely mirror legitimate communications. These messages often imitate trusted suppliers, partners or colleagues, making them challenging to question without careful checks. As a result, even cautious business owners can be caught off guard.

According to a report cited by TechXplore, these scams are now “more convincing than ever”. The use of natural language tools allows fraudsters to remove the spelling mistakes and awkward phrasing that once gave them away. Voice cloning and image generation are also beginning to play a role, adding another layer of credibility that traditional security training does not always address.

Small businesses face mounting financial pressure

Smaller firms are especially exposed to these attacks because they often lack dedicated cybersecurity staff or advanced protection systems. When a scam succeeds, the impact can be immediate and painful. Money may be transferred to fraudulent accounts, sensitive data may be locked or stolen, and normal operations can grind to a halt.

One expert quoted in the research said the losses businesses are facing are “no longer rare or minor”. For many owners, a single successful scam can undo months of hard work. Insurance may not fully cover the damage, and legal or recovery processes can take time, leaving companies struggling to manage cash flow.

AI has also lowered the entry barrier for criminals. Ready-made scam kits are now widely available online at low cost, sometimes priced no higher than a monthly streaming subscription. These tools allow even inexperienced scammers to launch campaigns that target dozens or hundreds of businesses at once. The result is a wider net that increases the chances of success and spreads financial harm across many firms.

The report also points to cases where AI hype itself has been used as a lure. Thousands of people were tricked into downloading fake ChatGPT apps and paying for subscriptions that delivered no real service. In response, OpenAI later moved to restrict the misuse of its technology for fraud and other deceptive practices.

The hidden cost is passed on to consumers

When small businesses lose money to cybercrime, they are often forced to make difficult decisions to survive. While customers may never hear about the original scam, they can still feel its effects. Prices may rise slightly, delivery times may lengthen, or extra charges may appear on bills as firms try to recover their losses.

As the report notes, the cost of cybercrime is increasingly “being passed on to buyers who have no idea it is happening”. For consumers, this creates a disconnect between cause and effect. A higher price at checkout may be linked to a scam that occurred weeks earlier, far removed from the shopping experience itself.

This trend means that even people who never fall victim to a scam personally can still pay a price. As AI-driven fraud continues to grow, its financial impact spreads beyond individual victims and into the wider economy. Everyday spending begins to reflect the rising cost of digital crime, quietly built into goods and services.

Industry groups and regulators are now under pressure to respond. While some technology companies are taking steps to limit misuse of their tools, experts warn that awareness and basic security measures remain critical, especially for small firms. Without stronger defences, the indirect costs to consumers are likely to keep rising, turning AI-powered scams into a shared financial burden.