A scammer used an AI-generated voice of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to contact senior American officials and foreign ministers, according to US diplomatic sources.
The unidentified individual used the Signal app to impersonate Rubio’s voice and contacted three foreign ministers, one US governor, and a member of Congress.
With the help of artificial intelligence, the scammer not only mimicked Rubio’s voice but also replicated his writing style, sending text messages as well.
In mid-June, the impersonator created a fake Signal account under the name “Marco.Rubio@state.gov” and sent voice and text messages inviting recipients to communicate via Signal.
The US State Department said the cyberattack aimed to mislead officials into revealing sensitive information or gaining access to secure systems.
The department added that a full investigation is underway, and additional security measures will be implemented to prevent such incidents in the future.
This incident comes just months after the “Signalgate” scandal, where a journalist was mistakenly added to a group chat of senior U.S. military and government officials—including the Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense.
In that group, the Secretary of Defense shared real-time updates about sensitive military operations in Yemen, raising serious security concerns.
It was later revealed that former National Security Advisor Mike Waltz had accidentally added The Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg to the group. Waltz was removed from his position, and Marco Rubio temporarily assumed the role of National Security Advisor.
Waltz is now facing a Senate hearing for his nomination as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
Cybersecurity experts have warned that despite being encrypted, apps like Signal may not be reliable for official communications. In 2023, the Department of Defense banned the exchange of sensitive information via Signal, WhatsApp, and iMessage for this very reason.
