AI empowering spammers?

An observation, a question, and “Author, beware!”

I’ve noticed an uptick in emails and DMs supposedly from illustrators / artists offering their services to authors and publishers, saying they do commissioned illustration or book covers. When I view their portfolio, it’s random enough that it feels like a bunch of images grabbed off the internet, and it’s usually not on a domain they own that matches their name, nor on any well-known portfolio site. There are sometimes images in a group that appear to be the same artistic style, but the overall portfolio is not consistent, even for a student exploring different styles or a portfolio to show a range of ability.

If I reply for more info (sometimes if it doesn’t involve clicking suspicious links I follow up on these things to see what the catch is), they quote their prices for various things.

I haven’t felt like pursuing it far enough to see if they try to take my money and run, but I’m just curious if others have noticed the increase in targeted spam that manages to get past the typical spam filters. I’ve seen an increase in other industries, too, like spam that offers SEO help or business consulting.

It feels like there’s more intelligent targeting, more slipping past filters, and yet still spammy. Have any of you noticed this, too?