What happened
In May 2025 an unknown person made calls and sent text messages impersonating White House chief of staff Susie Wiles to senior Republicans, including senators, governors and business executives. Reporting indicated the impersonator drew on contacts obtained from Wiles's hacked personal phone and, on calls, used what officials believed was an AI clone of her voice. Requests included a list of people who might be considered for presidential pardons and, in at least one case, a cash transfer. The FBI and the White House opened investigations.
How the deception worked
The attack started from a compromised personal phone, which supplied both the target list and the context needed to make each approach specific. Messages and calls appeared to come from someone recipients genuinely deal with, and the requests, a pardon shortlist or a favour involving money, are the kind of sensitive, informal business that plausibly happens by phone rather than through official channels precisely because it is delicate. The cloned voice removed the last check most recipients would apply. Suspicion emerged from content rather than technology: some recipients noticed the requests did not match how Wiles operates, and the messages came from an unfamiliar number.
AI involvement · Suspected AI-enabled
Officials cited by news reports believed the impersonator used AI to replicate Susie Wiles's voice on phone calls; the contact list appears to have come from her compromised personal phone.
The control that would have caught it· our reading, not a claim from the sources
Senior staff should keep official business off personal devices and pre-agree verification practices with frequent contacts, so that an unexpected request from a new number is confirmed before anyone acts.
Sources (2)
- White House responds to attempts to impersonate Trump advisor Susie WilesNewsweek·newsweek.comOpen ↗
- Trump officials keep getting targeted by 'vishing'TIME·time.comOpen ↗
This entry summarises public reporting. It is not a legal finding, and details can change as investigations conclude. Found an error? Send a correction.