A Los Angeles woman lost almost $100,000 after falling for a Steve Burton deepfake scam. The woman was contacted by scammers who sent her a convincing AI-generated videos of the actor to coerce her into transferring money to them. She shared how the scammers made her believe that the actor was in love with her.
Abigail Ruvalcaba, a Los Angeles resident, started receiving messages from someone who claimed to be the General Hospital actor Steve Burton. The affectionate messages started a year ago and continued up until now.
Some videos even featured the actor himself, which was what made her fully put her trust in him. “I thought I was in love,” the woman told KTLA. She confessed that she thought the actor and she would eventually lead a “good life together.”
The deepfake videos were terrifyingly convincing with the deepfake. The AI-generated video was able to replicate the actor’s voice and look perfectly. The scammers were successful in manipulating Ruvalcaba, which made her lose a significant amount of money in turn.
“I love you so much, darling. I had to make this video to make you happy, my love,” the AI-generated Steve Burton could be heard saying in one of the videos. “Know that nothing will ever make me hurt you or lie to you, my queen,” he added in the same video.
Unfortunately, the Los Angeles woman had no knowledge of how AI actually works and did not never doubted the scammers. Ruvalcaba was convinced that it was the real Steve Burton that she was talking to. She noted how the videos look “real” to her even now, after realising that it was a scam.
AI-generated videos of “General Hospital” actor Steve Burton asking for money scammed a woman out of more than $81,000. Now, her family is speaking out about the incident. https://t.co/BoIJ9r5Ek7 pic.twitter.com/EvdDOjZbxF
— E! News (@enews) August 28, 2025
“I feel stupid, taken. Why is somebody asking me for money? I feel like a dummy,” she admitted. The Los Angeles resident admitted that she had been living in a “fantasy world.” Vivian Ruvalcaba, the woman’s daughter, has now started a GoFundMe page to help raise money for her daughter. Vivian shares how, by the time she found out about the scam, her mother had already sent the scammers $81,000 through various forms of payment.
The scammers received money from the woman by cash, checks, Zelle, and Bitcoin. “In October 2024, while battling severe Bipolar 1 Disorder, my mom met a man online who claimed to love her,” her daughter revealed on the GoFundMe page.
Scammers are now turning to artificial intelligence to get your money, and unfortunately for some people, it’s working.
Investigative reporter Kevin Ozebek tells us about a scam involving “General Hospital” star Steve Burton and a South Los Angeles woman today on Eyewitness News… pic.twitter.com/vsWtwlINr5
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) August 26, 2025
She also delved into how Ruvalcaba was “emotionally and financially” manipulated by the scammers. Vivian also revealed how the scammer “groomed” her mother into selling her own house so he could get more money out of her. As a result, the woman sold her $350,000 condo within three weeks of putting it up for sale.
Vivian shared how her mother had planned on sending the scammer another $70,000 if she hadn’t found out what was going on and hadn’t intervened. “She’s ashamed… I know it weighs heavily on her,” the daughter revealed in a conversation with KABC.
