FBI Investigates Alleged Impersonation of White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles
WASHINGTON – The FBI is investigating an alleged scheme to impersonate White house Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, involving text messages and phone calls sent to prominent Republican politicians and business leaders.The effort reportedly sought sensitive information, including a request for a list of individuals former president Trump could pardon, and at one point, attempted to solicit a cash transfer.
The impersonation, which occurred Friday, targeted Wiles’ personal cellphone, not her government-issued device, according to sources familiar with the investigation. While some recipients initially believed the communications originated from Wiles, discrepancies in language, grammatical errors, and requests for money raised suspicions. The messages and calls reportedly came from a different phone number than wiles’ known number, and the impersonator allegedly used a voice mimicking Wiles’-potentially created through artificial intelligence.
This incident follows a 2024 report that Wiles was previously targeted by an Iranian operation that compromised her email account during the presidential campaign. However, the FBI has informed the White House it currently dose not suspect foreign government involvement in the latest impersonation attempt.
“The FBI takes all threats against the president, his staff, and our cybersecurity with the utmost seriousness,” FBI Director Kash Patel stated to the wall Street Journal.”Safeguarding our administration officials’ ability to securely communicate to accomplish the president’s mission is a top priority.”
A white House spokesperson confirmed the investigation, stating they take “cybersecurity of all staff very seriously.” The FBI’s investigation is ongoing.
