With AI deepfakes mimicking faces and voices on video calls, which simple security habit now matters most when approving large financial transfers or sensitive requests?

Verify the request through a separate channel

Before approving a large transfer or sharing sensitive information, confirm the request using a communication channel you initiate yourself. For example, hang up and call the person on a phone number you already had on file—not a number they provide during the call. A prearranged code word or an established internal approval process can serve the same purpose.

This is called out-of-band verification: checking a request somewhere other than the conversation in which it arrived. The separation matters because a convincing face and voice on a video call are not reliable proof of identity. If an attacker controls or impersonates that call, asking for another detail in the same conversation may not help.

Make the check independent

A useful verification step should not depend on contact details or instructions supplied in the suspicious request. If a supposed executive asks an employee to transfer money, the employee can contact that executive through a saved number or the company’s normal approval system. If the request cannot be confirmed independently, pause it and escalate rather than treating urgency as a reason to skip the check.

The habit is simple, but it changes what the decision rests on: not whether a video looks real, but whether the request is confirmed through a trusted route. For a high-stakes transfer, a brief callback can be the difference between recognizing a familiar person and verifying who is actually asking.