Cybercriminals are taking their schemes to a new alarming level after a vicious security breach hit the White House.
Specifically, hackers have used artificial intelligence (AI) to impersonate Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
FBI investigators are now racing to uncover who hacked Wiles’ personal phone and used the sophisticated plot targeting conservatives.
These unknown perpetrators have been impersonating Wiles in communications with Republican senators, governors, and business executives.
They have used advanced AI technology to clone her voice in what has been described as an elaborate fraud scheme.
According to reports first published, the impersonator gained access to Wiles’ personal phone contacts, allowing them to reach high-level Republican figures using her identity.
The security breach did not affect her government-issued phone but compromised her private device.
The plot gave fraudsters access to her extensive network of contacts built during her distinguished political career.
The messages sent by the impersonator raised immediate red flags among recipients.
Some texts requested lists of people for President Trump to pardon, while others made suspicious requests for cash transfers.
Several targets became suspicious when the impersonator asked to continue conversations on messaging platforms like Telegram.
FBI Director Kash Patel addressed the situation, saying:
“The FBI takes all threats against the President, his staff, and our cybersecurity with the utmost seriousness; safeguarding our administration officials’ ability to securely communicate to accomplish the President’s mission is a top priority.”
This troubling incident comes amid increasing foreign threats against American officials.
Wiles’ email was previously targeted by Iranian agents, and three members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps were indicted for hacking attempts.
The FBI had warned since April about a malicious campaign impersonating senior US officials, suggesting this may be part of a broader attack on the government’s security infrastructure.
The impersonator’s messages were notably different from Wiles’ usual communication style, featuring broken grammar and an unusually formal tone.
Recipients who know Wiles personally quickly noticed these inconsistencies, preventing the scheme from succeeding more broadly.
Wiles has since reached out to her contacts to apologize for the incident and warned them to disregard any suspicious messages.
As the first woman to hold the Chief of Staff position, Wiles has been praised by President Trump as a skilled behind-the-scenes operator who helped secure his historic return to the White House.
This targeting of a top Trump administration official raises serious concerns about the increasing sophistication of AI-powered scams that can now convincingly mimic the voices of high-ranking officials.
The FBI and White House have not commented further on the ongoing investigation.
Still, security experts warn that this type of advanced impersonation attack represents a growing threat to government officials across the political spectrum.
With AI technology becoming more accessible, the ability to create convincing voice clones poses significant challenges for securing communications at the highest levels of government.
