AI Scam Uses Rubio’s Voice To Target Government Officials

An unknown impersonator used AI to mimic the voice and writing style of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and consequently contacting high-level officials through voice and text messages.

The Washington Post received a State Department cable showing that at least five people received messages from the impersonator, including three foreign ministers, a U.S. governor, and a member of Congress.

According to The Post, the impersonator started its’ campaign in mid-June by creating a Signal account displaying the name “[email protected]” instead of Rubio’s actual email address. The impersonator then began sending messages through the encrypted app Signal.

“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,” the cable stated, as

U.S. officials remain unaware about the identity of the scammer, but believe the goal is to access sensitive information or accounts. The State Department says it will “carry out a thorough investigation and continue to implement safeguards to prevent this from happening in the future,” as reported by The Post

The Rubio case joins other recent instances of this growing trend, as AI tools make this scam easter than ever. An impersonator pretending to be White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles sent fake messages to senators and executives during May. “You just need 15 to 20 seconds of audio of the person,” said Hany Farid, a digital forensics expert at UC Berkeley said to The Post.

“You upload it to any number of services, click a button that says ‘I have permission to use this person’s voice,’ and then you type what you want him to say,” Farid added.

The FBI has warned that malicious actors are using AI voice cloning in “ongoing” campaigns to manipulate U.S. officials, as reported by The Post. The agency urges anyone receiving suspicious messages to report them immediately. Impersonating a federal official to deceive or gain something is a crime.

Concerns over AI exploitation are now intersecting with broader federal cybersecurity fears. Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has sparked alarm among IT experts, who warn the group poses an unprecedented threat to national systems.

Despite lacking qualified personnel, DOGE has sought and reportedly gained access to critical U.S. agencies such as the Treasury, OPM, and FAA.

Experts say even read-only access could allow data exfiltration or systemic disruption. “This is the largest data breach and the largest IT security breach in our country’s history—at least that’s publicly known,” a federal contractor stated.

The overlap between AI-powered impersonation campaigns and unregulated access to sensitive systems has created what one expert called a “perfect storm” of digital insecurity.