Rubio impersonator used AI voice to contact US, foreign officials
A July 3 diplomatic cable sent from the department warned that the imposter contacted at least three foreign ministers, a U.S. governor and a U.S. member of Congress, the Washington Post first reported.
"The actor likely aimed to manipulate targeted individuals using AI-generated text and voice messages, with the goal of gaining access to information or accounts," the cable said, per Reuters.
The cable pointed to a separate incident in April that was attributed to a Russia-linked hacker who conducted a spear phishing campaign targeting think tanks, Eastern European activists and dissidents and former State Department officials.
In a statement to USA TODAY on Tuesday, July 8, the State Department said it is investigating the incident.
"The Department takes seriously its responsibility to safeguard its information and continuously takes steps to improve the department's cybersecurity posture to prevent future incidents," the statement, attributed to a senior State Department official, said. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce echoed this sentiment at a July 8 press briefing.
The State Department did not reveal further details about the identities of the foreign ministers and U.S. politicians contacted. Neither the cable nor the department indicated a suspected perpetrator.
Trump trade war: Copper imports hit with tariffs, pharmaceuticals are next
How did the impersonator reach officials?
The impersonator created a Signal account using the display name 'Marco.Rubio@state.gov,' which is not Rubio's State Department email, according to the Washington Post.
In mid-June, the person contacted the ministers, a U.S. governor and a member of Congress via the Signal messaging app. Voicemails were left in two instances, and a text message in a third instance invited the targeted person to communicate on Signal.
The Washington Post reported that other State Department personnel were impersonated by email.
The administration was previously embroiled in scandal for the use of Signal to share detailed secret plans for a U.S. strike on Iran-backed militants in Yemen via a group chat consisting of top Trump administration officials that accidentally included The Atlantic magazine editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg.
That group included users whose names matched Trump's top officials, including Rubio, Vice President JD Vance, Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Brian McCormack, a member of the National Security Council.
The Wall Street Journal reported in May that federal authorities were investigating an attempt to impersonate Wiles.
'The White House takes the cybersecurity of all staff very seriously, and this matter continues to be investigated,' a White House spokeswoman told the outlet at the time.
Reuters contributed to this story.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Insider
10 minutes ago
- Business Insider
Stock Market News Review: SPY, QQQ Stumble as Trump Announces New Tariffs, Pressures Powell to Resign
The S&P 500 ETF (SPY) and the Nasdaq 100 ETF (QQQ) whipsawed between positive and negative territory several times on Tuesday. SPY closed in the red while QQQ was able to pull through in the green. Don't Miss TipRanks' Half-Year Sale Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. Make smarter investment decisions with TipRanks' Smart Investor Picks, delivered to your inbox every week. The market took a turn lower after President Trump announced that more countries would soon receive letters detailing their updated tariff rates. He also said that the August 1 tariff pause deadline would not be extended. So far, the U.S. has sent letters to 14 countries. Trump is also considering a steep tariff on copper imports. 'I believe the tariff on copper, we're going to make it 50%,' said Trump during a Cabinet meeting. Afterward, copper futures surged higher by 17%, marking the highest intraday rise in 37 years. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick added that the tariff could be implemented either later this month or on August 1. If 50% wasn't high enough, Trump announced that he may tariff pharmaceutical imports at a 200% rate. 'They're going to be tariffed at a very, very high rate, like 200%,' warned Trump. The tariffs would begin in a year to a year and a half in order to give pharmaceutical companies time to set up shop in the U.S. In addition, Trump also has plans for tariffs on semiconductors and other goods. In a Truth Social post, Trump criticized Fed Chair Jerome Powell for 'whining like a baby about non-existent Inflation for months, and refusing to do the right thing.' Trump added that import prices have fallen lower, citing a study from the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA). Earlier in the day, Trump said that Powell ' should resign immediately.' He also said that he wouldn't be opposed to Congress investigating Powell over the Fed's $2.5 billion Washington, D.C. headquarters renovation. To end on an optimistic note, Goldman Sachs (GS) raised its 2025 SPX price target to 6,600 from 6,100. Bank of America (BAC) tagged along and hiked its target to 6,300 from 5,600. The S&P 500 (SPX) closed with a 0.07% loss while the Nasdaq 100 (NDX) inched higher by 0.07%.
CNN
26 minutes ago
- CNN
New Details About Private Trump-Putin Conversation - The Source with Kaitlan Collins - Podcast on CNN Podcasts
New Details About Private Trump-Putin Conversation The Source with Kaitlan Collins 47 mins President Trump is losing his patience with Vladimir Putin as new reporting details who it was at the Pentagon that ordered a pause in aid to Ukraine.
CNBC
36 minutes ago
- CNBC
Trump tariffs raise the specter of sharper economic downturn for South Korea and Japan
In the first batch of "tariff letters" sent to trading partners, U.S. President Donald Trump took aim at two of the closest U.S. allies in Asia: Japan and South Korea — both are already bearing the brunt of the existing duties on auto and steel exports. Additional tariffs would further hurt these two exports-dependent economies that are grappling with a slowdown in growth, with Japan likely staring at a technical recession, or two straight quarters of economic contraction. Both Japan and South Korea saw first-quarter gross domestic product contract on a quarter-on-quarter basis. While South Korean imports to the U.S. face 25% tariffs, the same as Trump promised in April, the rate on Japan has been raised by 1 percentage point to 25%. Exports — including services — made up almost 22% of Japan's GDP in 2023, according to the latest data from the World Bank, and 44% of South Korea's GDP in 2023. Currently, imports of automobiles and auto parts to the U.S. incur a 25% tariff, while steel and aluminum attract a 50% levy on most countries. Automobiles are Japan's largest exports to the U.S. and are also among South Korea's top exports. South Korea was also the fourth-largest exporter of steel to the U.S. in 2024, according to the International Trade Administration under the U.S. Commerce Department. Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba reportedly said the country "actively seeks the chance of an agreement that benefits both countries, while protecting Japan's national interest." In May, Ishiba said that his country will not accept a deal that does not see the removal of auto tariffs. The newly announced tariffs will lower Japan's GDP by 0.1 percentage point by end-2026, according to Norihiro Yamaguchi, Lead Japan Economist at Oxford Economics."Given that the economy is already suffering from high tariffs on auto and elevated global trade policy uncertainly, and also weak consumption, the impact shouldn't be dismissed," he told CNBC Yamaguchi said that Japan's economy will "barely grow" in the second half of 2025 and in the first half of 2026, if not falling into a recession. The U.S. is Japan's largest export market, with 21.3 trillion yen ($145.76 billion) of shipments to the country in 2024, while South Korea exported goods worth $127.8 billion to the U.S. in the same year, and counts the U.S. as its second-largest export a "more intensified tariff policy stance," the Bank of Korea in May nearly halved GDP growth estimates for 2025 to 0.8% from February's projection of 1.5%. "The recovery in domestic demand has been delayed, while export growth is expected to slow further due to the impact of U.S. tariffs," the BOK said. Frederic Neumann, Chief Asia Economist at HSBC told CNBC that should Japan and South Korea fail to reach a deal, these tariffs will pose "considerable headwinds to growth." Both Japan and South Korea are already facing sluggish domestic demand. Offering a silver lining, Trump said that he was willing to "perhaps, consider an adjustment to this letter" if the countries were to open their "heretofore closed" markets to the U.S. Pressure tactics are being brought to bear on South Korea and Japan, said Vishnu Varathan, managing director at Mizuho Securities. "The frustration with Japan's more principled and holistic approach (covering sectoral tariffs) stalling a deal being a source of frustration for U.S. trade negotiators, and crucially for Trump, speaks for itself." he added. While Trump has not publicly expressed anger toward South Korea, Varathan said "it is not unimaginable that there are sticking points similar to Japan's, thereby invoking the letter." Markets, meanwhile, appear to be shrugging of the tariff threats — for now. HSBC's Neumann said that Trump's lettersessentially amounts to a deadline extension for tariff negotiations by three weeks. "Financial markets are taking the latest news in their stride, focusing on the possibility that the threatened tariffs may still be whittled down through negotiation," he said.
