China Launches AI-Powered Anti-Fraud App for Citizens
China has officially launched the “National Anti-Fraud AI” application, a new AI-powered digital tool designed to help citizens identify and protect themselves from telecom and online fraud schemes. The app was independently developed by the Shanghai Municipal Public Security Bureau under the guidance of the Criminal Investigation Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security, according to Xinhua.
Fighting a Growing Digital Threat
The launch comes amid an intensifying battle against telecom fraud in China, where fraudsters increasingly deploy AI technologies themselves—including deepfakes and AI-generated voices—to deceive victims. In 2025, Chinese police solved 258,000 telecom fraud cases nationwide, intercepted 3.6 billion scam calls and 3.3 billion scam text messages, and blocked 217.07 billion yuan in fraudulent funds, according to data reported during the June 2026 “All People Anti-Fraud in Action” campaign launch, as documented by CDSB.
Three Core Functions
The new app integrates large language models, multimodal models, and AI agent technologies, allowing users to input details of suspicious situations through their mobile phones. It then assesses potential risks, identifies possible fraud tactics, provides prevention advice, and recommends relevant cases, as reported by China Daily.
The app offers three main functions. Its AI-powered question-and-answer service analyzes user queries from multiple perspectives—including fraud risk analysis, scam type identification, and preventive measures—while synchronously linking related video cases for real-time anti-fraud education. An anti-fraud information section embeds content from the National Anti-Fraud Center and Shanghai’s “803” anti-fraud media network, regularly publishing updates, warnings about prevalent scam types, and analyses of typical cases through articles, graphics, and short videos. A third section, described as an anti-fraud dictionary, contains electronic versions of the “Handbook on Preventing Telecom and Online Fraud” and the “National Guide to Fraud Prevention,” which users can browse by category, search by keyword, or access through a voice-reading function, according to the Legal Daily.
The app is now available through major mobile application stores, with services also accessible through mini-programs on WeChat and Alipay, the Ministry of Public Security confirmed.
From Shanghai Pilot to National Platform
The “National Anti-Fraud AI” represents the national upgrade of the “803 Anti-Fraud Agent,” which was launched by the Shanghai Anti-Telecom Fraud Center on December 30, 2025, and positioned as a tool for all 1.4 billion Chinese citizens. The “803” designation originates from the Shanghai Public Security Bureau’s criminal investigation code, and the original app was integrated into Shanghai’s “Sui Shen Ban” government services platform.
At the December launch event, actor Hu Ge was appointed as Shanghai’s Anti-Fraud Publicity Ambassador, noting that “fraud methods are now numerous and varied; everyone could become a target of fraud.” The Shanghai government reported that the city’s telecom fraud cases had declined for seven consecutive years, with daily averages of 285,000 SMS reminders and 33,000 phone alerts issued.
Yin Xiangjian, deputy director of the Shanghai Public Security Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Corps, described the agent as “a concrete practice of the ‘traffic dismantling’ proactive prevention concept,” emphasizing the strategy of creating targeted educational content at speed and distributing it through high-traffic channels to reach potential victims before fraudsters do.
A Complementary Tool in a Broader Strategy
The new app complements—rather than replaces—the existing National Anti-Fraud Center App launched in 2021, which focuses more on real-time call blocking and AI content verification. As noted in a detailed comparison by SMZDM, the National Anti-Fraud Center App excels at real-time intervention during calls and messages, while the new AI-powered tool is designed for proactive consultation—allowing users to query suspicious information before acting on it.
This distinction matters for accessibility. The new app requires no complex permission grants, making it more approachable for elderly users and those less familiar with technology. Features like voice reading and simple Q&A interfaces lower the barrier to entry for populations most vulnerable to sophisticated scam tactics.
The launch also coincides with broader national efforts, including the “All People Anti-Fraud in Action” concentrated publicity campaign launched in June 2026 by the Central Propaganda Department and the Ministry of Public Security. The campaign theme—“Don’t listen, don’t believe, don’t covet; build a psychological anti-fraud defense line”—reflects a growing recognition that technological defenses must be paired with public awareness.
What to Watch For
As AI-powered fraud schemes grow more sophisticated, the effectiveness of AI-driven countermeasures will be closely watched. The app’s integration of large language models and multimodal capabilities represents a significant step in using cutting-edge technology for public security purposes. However, the specific underlying AI model has not been publicly disclosed, and questions remain about how the system will adapt to rapidly evolving scam tactics.
Observers will also track how the app’s national rollout proceeds across different regions and demographics, particularly its adoption among elderly citizens who remain the most frequent targets of telecom fraud. The success of this initiative could establish a template for other nations grappling with the intersection of AI and financial crime.
For now, the message from Chinese authorities is clear: in the escalating arms race between fraudsters and defenders, artificial intelligence is now firmly on the side of prevention.