• An impersonator used AI-generated voice to pose as Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
• The impersonation targeted three foreign ministers, a U.S. senator, and a governor.
• The State Department issued warnings to all diplomatic posts regarding the incident.
• AI technology has been increasingly used for impersonation attempts against top officials.

An unidentified individual impersonated Secretary of State Marco Rubio using an artificially generated voice, reaching out to various high-profile officials, including three foreign ministers, a U.S. governor, and a member of Congress, as outlined in a cable obtained by multiple news organizations, including Reuters, HuffPost, and CBS News.

The State Department's warning, issued in a cable dated July 3, highlighted the impersonator's use of the Signal messaging app, where voicemails were left for at least two of the targets and a text message invited one to communicate further via the app. This incident signifies a manipulation effort likely aimed at accessing sensitive information from key officials, according to reports from Los Angeles Times and India Times.

The cable warned that while there is "no direct cyber threat" from this impersonation, any information shared with compromised individuals could be at risk. The incident came shortly after the FBI raised concerns over similar impersonation tactics, describing efforts by "malicious actors" to use AI-generated messages to deceive other government officials, as detailed by Channel News Asia and NPR.

Officials described the impersonation attempts as "not very sophisticated," and the State Department confirmed that measures are being taken to enhance cybersecurity and prevent future incidents, according to information reported by South China Morning Post and The Hill.

Moreover, this latest incident is part of a broader trend where high-profile individuals, including Trump administration officials, have been targeted using similar strategies. The ongoing technological advancements in AI present increasing challenges for cybersecurity, raising alarms about the frequency of such impersonation attempts, as analyzed in stories covered by Le Monde and India Times.