Fake Marco Rubio Uses AI to Target Ministers, US Officials

Washington: According to an American newspaper, an impostor has contacted foreign foreign ministers, a US governor, and a US member of Congress by posing as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The Washington Post, citing a US State Department cable and a senior US official, said the impostor sent these individuals audio and written messages that mimicked Marco Rubio’s voice and writing style, all done using artificial intelligence-based software.

A cable sent to State Department employees by Marco Rubio’s office said authorities do not know who is behind these fraud attempts, but officials believe the goal is to gain access to information or accounts by deceiving influential government officials.

The cable, released on July 3, said the impostor contacted at least five people, including three foreign secretaries of state, a US governor and a member of Congress, via text messages and the encrypted messaging app Signal (which is widely used by the Trump administration).

The series began in mid-June when the impostor created an account on Signal under the name Marco.Rubio@state.gov and contacted foreign and domestic diplomats and politicians through that name.

When asked about the cable, the State Department said it would conduct a full investigation and strengthen security measures to prevent similar incidents in the future. However, officials declined to reveal the contents of the messages or the names of the individuals targeted.

It was not clear whether any officials responded to the impostor.

The cable instructed US diplomats to immediately report any fraud to the relevant agencies. It is a crime in the US to impersonate a federal officer or employee to obtain any benefit.

The incident involving Marco Rubio is one of the latest attempts to impersonate top US officials. In May, the phone of White House Chief of Staff Suzy Wiles was hacked and calls and messages were sent to senators, governors, and business people.