Deepfakes Fuel Sophisticated Cyber Attacks on U.S. Officials and Crypto Founders

A new breed of cyberattack is gaining traction, blending social engineering with AI-generated deepfakes to target government workers and crypto leaders.

In recent weeks, the FBI has issued warnings about a disturbing trend: scammers posing as high-ranking U.S. officials using deepfake audio and messages to trick victims into giving up sensitive data.

The scheme has been active since April, with bad actors attempting to lure public servants into clicking malicious links or logging into fake platforms designed to steal passwords. If successful, the hackers gain access to official contact lists, amplifying the potential damage by impersonating trusted individuals in follow-up attacks.

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Meanwhile, in the crypto world, industry figures are also under fire. Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal reported a chilling scam involving deepfaked video calls where he and other team members were falsely shown on screen. In reality, victims were being coerced into downloading malicious software during silent Zoom calls orchestrated by attackers who had hijacked legitimate Telegram accounts.

Nailwal expressed frustration over the lack of recourse on platforms like Telegram, where reporting mechanisms are limited. Other prominent Web3 figures, including Dovey Wan, have also confirmed being mimicked in similar scams.

As deepfake technology becomes more convincing and accessible, cybercriminals are moving beyond email phishing—now targeting their victims through highly realistic impersonation across multiple channels.

Alexander Stefanov