Fraudsters are everywhere, and AI is making their job easier than ever.
Fraudsters are all around us, and AI is making their scams easier than ever.
I received a polite message from a translator expressing her admiration for one of my books and her desire to translate it into Hungarian.
Being fluent in Hungarian, I was intrigued and asked how much she charges and if she could provide a sample translation. She readily agreed and said she can translate 10K words for $500. Out of curiosity, I sent her a page from my book. In just ten minutes, she responded with the translated page.
It was obvious that the translation was done by an advanced AI program.
I wonder how many unsuspecting authors she fooled with her “translation,” and I sent her this message:
Translating English into Hungarian isn’t just about knowing words—it’s about capturing spirit, tone, and flavor.
Due to the complexity of the Hungarian language, AI translation cannot reach a level that would be enjoyable for a native speaker because Hungarian is an agglutinative language, meaning it builds words by stacking prefixes and suffixes—sometimes resulting in one word that replaces an entire phrase in English.
English uses word order to convey meaning, while Hungarian relies more on case endings and context.
Vocabulary and Expression:
Hungarian often doesn’t have a direct equivalent for English idioms or phrases, so translations require creative rephrasing rather than word-for-word swaps.
Some English words have multiple meanings, but Hungarian might need several separate words depending on the context.
Cultural Context:
Humor, sarcasm, and cultural references in English can be hard to capture in Hungarian without sounding awkward or overly literal.
Example:
English: "I’ll get back to you."
Hungarian: "Később visszajelzek." (literally: “I’ll respond later.”) — the tone and intent have to be interpreted, not just translated.
English: “I used to be a baker, but I couldn't make enough dough.”
Dough = money + bread ingredient.
Hungarian challenge: Wordplay often doesn’t survive translation because puns rely on sound or dual meanings. Hungarian doesn’t use the same idiomatic overlap, so a translator has to either explain the joke (which kills it!) or rewrite it entirely with local humor.
It’s a bit like trying to fit puzzle pieces from two completely different sets—but when done well, the meaning, emotions, and humor are conveyed perfectly.
She blocked me and deleted our messages, so I thought I’d alert fellow authors about these so-called “translation” offers.
Have you been scammed by so-called translators, editors, book cover artists or vanity publishers? Tell us about your experience.
Erika M Szabo
Erika loves to dance to her own tunes and follow her dreams, introducing her story-writing skills and her books that are based on creative imagination with themes such as magical realism, alternate history, urban fantasy, cozy mystery, sweet romance, and supernatural stories. Her children’s stories are informative and educational and deliver moral values in a non-preachy way.