Scammers are leveraging artificial intelligence to create and market seeds for entirely fictional plants, exploiting online marketplaces like eBay, Amazon, and Etsy. These fabricated flora are depicted with impossible features such as bird, butterfly, and cat-shaped blooms, along with vibrant, unnatural color gradients and technicolor leaves.
The listings, which appear to originate from sellers in locations like Shenzhen, offer these fantastical seeds at low price points, often around $5.75 per packet. While individual transactions are typically for small amounts, the high volume of sales suggests a potentially lucrative scheme for the perpetrators. This current scam differs from previous "brushing" scams, where unsolicited seeds were sent to inflate seller ratings. In this AI-driven scheme, the seeds themselves are the product being sold for direct profit.
The ease with which generative AI can produce photorealistic images of these nonexistent plants is a key enabler of the scam. Previously, scammers might have resorted to manually altering photographs. Now, AI tools allow for the rapid generation of numerous visually striking, yet entirely fabricated, product images with minimal effort.
While some listings may reference real plant names, such as the "cat's face orchid" (which does exist but has a natural appearance distinct from the AI-generated images), the advertised specimens are fabricated. The AI-generated images often depict a more exaggerated or psychedelic version of these naturally occurring resemblances.
Consumers are advised to exercise significant caution when encountering unusual or overly fantastical plant imagery in online seed listings. A crucial step is to verify the botanical Latin name of the advertised plant. If the variety cannot be found in reputable horticultural databases, university extension resources, or established specialty nursery catalogs, it should be treated with extreme skepticism.
Purchasing seeds from established companies with a physical presence, clear germination rates, and a long operational history is recommended. For those considering overseas sellers, checking for necessary import certifications, such as a phytosanitary certificate or a USDA APHIS PPQ 587 permit for small quantities entering the United States, can provide an additional layer of verification.
The proliferation of AI-generated imagery in e-commerce poses a broader challenge, enabling scammers to quickly establish online storefronts, populate them with fabricated products, and potentially disappear before the deception is widely recognized. This trend necessitates increased vigilance from consumers regarding online listings that rely heavily on visually stunning, but potentially misleading, product photographs.
