South Korea enlists AI to spot pump and dump schemes on social media, or in Spam

South Korea’s government and main stock exchange have developed and deployed AI-powered tools to detect schemes that aim to send the price of cryptocurrencies and shares soaring so that unscrupulous investors can cash in.

Schemes of this sort are known as “pump and dump,” and see investors acquire shares or virtual assets, then spread information they hope will induce others to buy them. If the scheme succeeds, the price of the targeted assets often rises. Sadly, the information spread by schemers is usually bunk, but by the time new investors discover that the perpetrators have sold their assets at a handy profit and disappeared.

Pump and dump schemes are nothing new, but social media gave their perpetrators a new way to reach the gullible.

Which is probably why the tech developed by Korea Exchange (KRX, the country’s main bourse) can scour online posts, YouTube, and even reported cases ...