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2025-07-09 Cyber
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Marco Rubio 'impersonator' used AI to mimic top Trump aide's voice on calls with foreign leaders
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| No hint about the identity, or at least linkages, of the miscreant, so Page 2: War on Terror Background for now. If it is revealed to be an effort for China or Russia, we’ll refile it. |
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] An imposter used AI technology to impersonate Secretary of State Marco Rubio and contacted at least a handful of top U.S. and foreign government officials, according to a diplomatic cable warning of the stunning blunder.
U.S. officials are hunting for the culprit, and assess that it is part of a plan to mop up information, the Washington Post reported.
The news comes just weeks after another impersonation plot involving a high-powered figure in the Trump White House, this one involving White House chief of staff Susie Wiles.
That nefarious plot involved stolen data from the personal cellphone of White House chief of staff Susie Wiles that was then used to call some of American's most powerful people.
In the Rubio scam, someone purporting to be the secretary of state who also serves as Trump's national security advisor dialed three foreign secretaries, as well as a governor and a U.S. member of Congress 'with the goal of gaining access to information or accounts,' according to a cable obtained by the Post.
The imposter 'contacted at least five non-Department individuals, including three foreign ministers, a U.S. governor, and a U.S. member of Congress,' according to the July 3 cable.
The imposter used text messages and the encrypted Signal app, the same app that led to the ouster of former National Security Advisor Michael Waltz after he accidentally added a reporter to a Signal group chat where top officials discussed a bombing campaign.
The contacts came in mid-June, during a flurry of high-stakes diplomatic activity amid wars in the Middle East and Ukraine and trade wars set off by President Trump's tariffs.
'The actor likely aimed to manipulate targeted individuals using AI-generated text and voice messages, with the goal of gaining access to information or accounts,' according to the cable.
The Daily Mail reached out to the State Department for a comment on the security breach.
AI tools are becoming increasingly powerful and easy to access, and creating a message in the voice a senior government official like Rubio is not particularly challenging.
There are massive amounts of publicly available clips that would allow AI technology to closely mimic Rubio's speech patterns and even content.
By relying on voice messages, the imposter would be able to fire off believable sounding missives that could potentially be used to collect additional information, with less risk of catching an error through real-time interaction.
The Daily Mail has reached out to the State Department and the White House for comment.
'The actor left voicemails on Signal for at least two targeted individuals and in one instance, sent a text message inviting the individual to communicate on Signal,' according to the cable.
Rubio makes for an obvious target because of his influence and his portfolio, which would give him a reason to interact with top officials throughout the government and abroad.
The former U.S. senator and former presidential candidate was seated to Trump's right during Monday night's high-stakes meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, where the Israeli leader handed Trump a letter nominating him for the Nobel Peace Prize, and where Trump called for sending arms to Ukraine and said he would meet with Iranian officials on a potential deal next week.
AI has already been used to manipulate public officials in campaign ads or commit deep fakes of Hollywood celebrities like Jennifer Anniston.
The FBI warned in May about an 'ongoing malicious text and voice messaging campaign.' 
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Posted by Skidmark 2025-07-09 00:00||
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