@pollar.news: On 17 August, Politico reported that somebody had texted Britain's new Prime Minister posing as Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff. Andy Burnham replied. The real Wiles had sent nothing. He grew suspicious and stopped, and a person briefed on the exchange called the messages "of no significance". The BBC said they were quickly reported to the appropriate authorities. No public source has said who was on the other end. The first fear inside the British government was a repeat of last year: her phone, hacked again. The White House says no. But her contacts file did reach someone else's hands in May 2025, and weeks later an impostor using an AI copy of Secretary of State Marco Rubio's voice contacted three foreign ministers, a governor and a member of Congress. Voicemails reached at least two. No public evidence ties these cases to one actor. They may be unconnected. Separately, the FBI has documented impersonation campaigns that can run like this: a trusted name, a move to an encrypted app, then a code that syncs the attacker's device with your contacts, so the next messages go out under a name those contacts trust. The bureau's December update expanded an earlier warning with this playbook. Last year the FBI logged 32,424 complaints of government impersonation and nearly $800 million in reported losses. Its advice now reaches families: agree a secret word. The President calls the Burnham episode a miscommunication and says the two have spoken. Downing Street does not comment. The sender has never been publicly named. Sources: Politico, BBC, AP, Reuters, FBI PSA I-051525 and I-121925, FBI IC3 Annual Report 2025. Burnham portrait: Prime Minister's Office (OGL v3). Cover photo: Tim Green (CC BY 2.0). #impersonation #AIvoice #cybersecurity #andyburnham #susiewiles

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Tuesday 18 August 2026 14:44:45 GMT