Two Texas-based companies have been linked to a series of robocalls that. The deepfake audio was used to urge New Hampshire voters not to participate in the state's presidential primary. New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella said that in January about 25,000 of the calls were made to state residents.
Formella says an investigation has linked the source of the robocalls to Texas companies Life Corporation and Lingo Telecom. No charges have yet been brought against the company or the owner of Life Corporation, a person named Walter Monk. The investigation is ongoing and other entities are believed to be involved. Federal authorities are also said to be investigating the case.
“We have issued a cease and desist letter to Life Corporation directing the company to immediately desist from violating New Hampshire's election laws,” Formella said at a news conference, according to tech/nh-ag-robocall-update” rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank” data-ylk=”slk:CNN;cpos:2;pos:1;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas” class=”link “>. “We have also opened a criminal investigation and are taking the next steps in that investigation by sending document preservation notices and subpoenas to Life Corporation, Lingo Telecom and any other individuals or entities.”
The Federal Communications Commission also sent a cease and desist letter to Lingo Telecom. The agency said () has warned both companies about robocalls in the past.
The deepfake was created using tools from ai voice cloning company ElevenLabs, which . The company says it is “dedicated to preventing misuse of audio ai tools and (takes) any incidents of misuse extremely seriously.”
Meanwhile, the FCC is the one using ai-generated voices. Under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, the agency is responsible for establishing rules regarding robocalls. Commissioners will vote on the issue in the coming weeks.
