U.K. Prime Minister Andy Burnham Briefly Duped By Susie Wiles Impersonator
An impersonator pretending to be White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles exchanged messages with British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, according to multiple reports, the latest incident of someone posing as Wiles contacting a powerful figure.
Burnham exchanged several messages of “no significance” with the person before becoming suspicious it wasn’t Wiles, one unnamed source briefed on the situation told Politico.
It’s unclear what was discussed and when the exchange took place.
Downing Street declined to comment on the incident, and an unnamed White House official told Politico, “this incident has nothing to do with the Chief of Staff’s devices being hacked.”
The FBI investigated a Wiles impersonator who also reached out to some Republican lawmakers, business executives and other prominent individuals last year, multiple outlets reported at the time, though it’s unclear if the incident with Burnham is connected.
The individual or individuals who posed as Wiles last year reached out to high-powered figures via text messages and phone calls using an AI generation of Wiles’ voice, according to multiple reports. Their motive at the time was unclear, but occasionally the impersonator would request money, and in another incident, asked a lawmaker to produce a list of people President Donald Trump could pardon, according to the Wall Street Journal, which was the first to report on the incident last year.
Hackers linked to Iran, using the pseudonym “Robert,” stole emails from Wiles and other figures in Trump’s orbit, including Stormy Daniels and Roger Stone, just before the 2024 election in what federal law enforcement described at the time as a cyber-attack. Some of the emails, which included details about settlement negotiations with Daniels and communication about other Republicans running for election, were distributed to journalists. The hackers communicated directly with news outlets. After the 2024 election, “Robert” told Reuters, “I am retired, man,” but contacted the news outlet again after the U.S. bombed Iranian nuclear facilities in June last year, alleging it had more stolen emails to distribute.