The African Union Commission has become a victim of cybercrime, as malevolent actors harnessed artificial intelligence tools to replicate the identity of AU Chairperson Moussa Faki.
Faki, who presides over the AU Commission, habitually employs formal correspondence, known as a “note verbale,” when initiating calls with global leaders or coordinating high-level meetings. These impostors, however, manipulated his voice and orchestrated multiple video calls with European capitals under the guise of arranging official engagements.
Additionally, the cybercriminals employed fraudulent email addresses, masquerading as the AU’s deputy chief of staff to orchestrate calls between foreign leaders and Faki. Notably, they executed deepfake video calls, assuming the identity of Chairperson @AUC_MoussaFaki while engaging with several European capitals.
The African Union underscored its commitment to diplomatic protocol and the exclusive utilization of “Note Verbale” for high-level engagement requests, expressing regret over the incidents and raising concerns that the fabricated emails constituted “phishing” attempts aimed at purloining digital identities for unauthorized access to confidential information.
The perpetrators harnessed deepfake technology, driven by artificial intelligence, which has gained notoriety for its potential use in spreading misinformation and propaganda, enabling the alteration of someone’s likeness, voice, and attributes to create fabricated content wherein the person appears to perform actions or utter statements they never actually did.