UK PM Burnham in Contact With Fake White House Official

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham exchanged messages with an individual pretending to be U.S. President Donald Trump's chief of staff, according to reports published Monday. The contact was cut off after Burnham became suspicious.

A spokesperson for Burnham declined to comment, citing a policy of not discussing "national security matters." Politico, citing four unnamed officials, first reported the incident.

The reported exchange follows a series of similar impersonation attempts last year, when U.S. officials, business executives, and other prominent figures received messages from someone posing as Susie Wiles. The U.S. government subsequently investigated those incidents.

Shortly afterward, the State Department warned diplomats about attempts to impersonate Secretary of State Marco Rubio and possibly other officials using artificial intelligence. That warning came after an impostor posing as Rubio tried to contact at least three foreign ministers, a U.S. senator, and a governor. The FBI also cautioned about "malicious actors" misusing AI to impersonate senior U.S. officials.

Burnham, who took office less than a month ago, has sought to build strong ties with the White House. President Trump initially warmed to Burnham's predecessor, Keir Starmer, before relations cooled.