An unknown individual used AI technology to impersonate US Secretary of State Marco Rubio through fake voice messages and texts, contacting at least five senior officials including foreign ministers, a US governor, and a member of Congress via Signal messaging app.
In mid-June 2025, an unidentified threat actor created a Signal account using the display name 'Marco.Rubio@state.gov' and used artificial intelligence to impersonate US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The imposter sent AI-generated voice messages and text messages that mimicked Rubio's voice and writing style to at least five high-profile targets: three foreign ministers, a US governor, and a member of Congress. The attacker left voicemails on Signal for at least two targeted individuals and sent text messages inviting others to communicate on the platform. According to a State Department cable dated July 3, 2025, the goal was to manipulate targeted individuals to gain access to information or accounts. The State Department confirmed they are investigating the matter and have warned all diplomatic posts about the impersonation attempts. Officials described the attempts as 'not very sophisticated' but noted the potential security risks. The incident follows similar AI impersonation attempts targeting other senior US officials, including White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles in May 2025. The FBI had previously warned about malicious actors using AI-generated voice messages to impersonate senior US government officials in ongoing campaigns.
Domain classification, causal taxonomy, severity scores, and national security assessments were LLM-classified and may contain errors.
Using AI systems to gain a personal advantage over others such as through cheating, fraud, scams, blackmail or targeted manipulation of beliefs or behavior. Examples include AI-facilitated plagiarism for research or education, impersonating a trusted or fake individual for illegitimate financial benefit, or creating humiliating or sexual imagery.
Human
Due to a decision or action made by humans
Intentional
Due to an expected outcome from pursuing a goal
Post-deployment
Occurring after the AI model has been trained and deployed