AI-generated Biden robocalls — deepfake voice used to suppress voter turnout
Date: 2024-01
Affected: New Hampshire primary voters — estimated 5,000-25,000 calls
Attack vector: deepfake
Category: real-world
Severity: Critical

AI-generated robocalls mimicking President Biden's voice were sent to New Hampshire voters ahead of the primary election, telling them not to vote and to 'save your vote for the November election'. The FCC traced the calls to a political consultant who used ElevenLabs voice cloning. The FCC subsequently ruled AI-generated voice robocalls illegal and fined the consultant $6M.

Impact: $6M FCC fine; FCC ruling making AI robocalls illegal; state and federal legislation proposed; ElevenLabs improved identity verification

Mitigations:
Voice synthesis provider identity verification and abuse monitoring
Audio watermarking and provenance tracking for synthetic speech
Detection systems for AI-generated voice content in telecommunications
Regulatory framework for synthetic media in elections (C2PA, watermarking mandates)

Architectural layers (MAESTRO):
label: Foundation Models
notes: Voice cloning model used to generate convincing deepfake of public figure
role: origin
label: Agent Ecosystem
notes: Third-party voice synthesis service weaponised for election interference
role: propagation
label: Security & Compliance
notes: Election integrity threat; regulatory response (FCC ruling) required
role: impact