Looking for the game? Fake YouTube stream leads viewers to AI Trump crypto scam

What appeared to be a live stream of Sunday night's Dallas Cowboys-New York Giants game instead led one Southeast Texas viewer into an elaborate cryptocurrency scam featuring an AI-generated President Donald Trump.

The viewer was searching YouTube for the Cowboys game after being unable to find the broadcast over the air. A stream titled “LIVE: New Your Giants vs Dallas Cowboy | Live Game” appeared to offer the game and used an official-looking thumbnail that included NFL branding. The stream also showed roughly 11,000 viewers watching at the time, adding another layer of apparent legitimacy.

Looking for the game? Fake YouTube stream leads viewers to AI Trump crypto scam

But after opening the stream, instead of the game, the video appeared to show a presidential news conference, with Trump standing alongside Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The video showed Trump promoting what was described as a cryptocurrency backed by the U.S. dollar and urging viewers to act quickly by scanning a QR code displayed on the podium.

The event was not a real news conference. The likenesses and voices of the officials appeared to be generated or manipulated using artificial intelligence as part of an investment scam.