Rubio impersonator using AI contacted foreign ministers, cable says

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio reacts as he testifies at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on U.S. President Donald Trump's State Department budget request for the Department of State, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 20, 2025. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -An individual using an artificially generated voice to impersonate Secretary of State Marco Rubio contacted three foreign ministers and two U.S. officials last month, pretending to be the top U.S. diplomat, according to a diplomatic cable seen by Reuters on Tuesday.

In mid-June, the person contacted the ministers, a U.S. governor and a member of Congress via the Signal messaging app and left voicemails for at least two of them, the cable said. In one instance, a text message was sent to invite the targeted person to communicate on Signal.