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6d ago

State Department Investigates AI-Driven Impersonation of Secretary Rubio

The State Department issued a worldwide advisory after an unknown actor used AI voice cloning to impersonate Rubio in calls to senior diplomats.

FILE - Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends a signing ceremony for a peace agreement between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo at the State Department, June 27, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio reacts as he testifies at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on U.S. President Donald Trump's State Department budget request for the Department of State, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 20, 2025. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo
The impersonator made a profile on Signal with the display name Marco.Rubio@state.gov.
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Overview

  • An unidentified actor cloned Rubio’s voice and mimicked his writing style in AI-generated texts and voicemails sent via Signal and fake @state.gov email display names.
  • Targets included at least three foreign ministers, a U.S. governor and a member of Congress who received outreach in mid-June.
  • A July 3 cable instructed U.S. embassies and consulates to warn external partners and report any impersonation attempts to the Bureau of Diplomatic Security.
  • The FBI and the State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security have opened probes into the campaign while it remains unclear if any officials responded or shared sensitive information.
  • The campaign follows spring FBI alerts on AI-enabled smishing and vishing and a May impersonation of White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, highlighting a growing deepfake threat.