Using AI, an imposter poses as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and contacts foreign ministers.
Imposter Posing as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio Sends AI-Generated Messages
An imposter posing as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio sent fake messages generated by artificial intelligence (AI) to foreign ministers and senior US officials, according to a report.
According to the report, a cable issued by the chief diplomat’s office asserts that an unidentified individual likely sought to manipulate senior officials “in order to access information and (personal) accounts.”
This individual contacted at least three foreign ministers, an American governor, and a member of Congress through messages sent via SMS and the encrypted messaging service Signal, according to the same cable. In mid-June, the imposter created an account on Signal with the username “Marco.Rubio@state.gov.” They “sent voice messages to at least two targeted individuals,” according to the cable. The contents of the messages remain unknown.
Techniques of “Smishing” and “Vishing”
According to the document, the identities of other State Department employees were also impersonated using email addresses. The State Department stated that it “will conduct a thorough investigation and continue to implement protective measures to prevent this from happening again in the future.”
The FBI has warned against “malicious actors” who, since April, have been impersonating senior US officials to target their contacts, including former or current federal agents.
“Malicious actors have sent SMS and AI-generated voice messages – techniques known as ‘smishing’ [SMS phishing] and ‘vishing’ [phishing using voice reproductions] – claiming to be from a senior US official in order to establish initial contact before accessing personal accounts,” the FBI said in May.
In May, the president revealed that the phone of Susie Wiles, White House chief of staff, had been hacked. Senators, governors, and American business leaders had received messages and calls from someone posing as Susie Wiles. While this led to an investigation by the FBI and the White House, the president minimized the threat, assuring that Susie Wiles was “an incredible woman” who could “handle” the situation.
Le Monde with AFP
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