UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham exchanged texts with person impersonating White House chief of staff Susie Wiles before growing suspicious, The Hill reports

Newly elected UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham exchanged text messages with a person posing as Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff, before he became suspicious, according to a report by The Hill. The incident was described as limited to messaging rather than phone calls, with communications characterized by a source familiar with the matter as having “no significance.”

The Hill reported that the interaction involved several text messages sent and received during a period before Burnham identified concerns about the impersonation. The account says the communications were conducted by text rather than by phone, and that the content was not described as substantive or policy-related.

Burnham’s suspicion, as described in the report, led to the communications being questioned and the situation coming to light through the source familiar with the episode. The Hill did not describe any immediate official disclosure by UK authorities in the report’s summary, nor did it outline any specific investigative steps or charges related to the impersonation.

A key practical detail in the reporting is that the suspect messaging did not include phone discussion and that the texts exchanged were described as carrying “no significance.” Even so, the report highlights how impersonation attempts can target senior officials through informal channels, creating risk for misinformation, confusion over authority, and the possibility that requests could be introduced once contact is established.

The report frames the impersonation as involving a role tied to the White House, raising the broader issue of how foreign leaders and governments authenticate contacts and handle communications that purport to originate from U.S. officials. It also underscores how text-based outreach can be difficult to verify quickly, particularly when it follows a plausible contact path.

Because the account is based on reporting and a source familiar with the situation, it does not by itself provide documentation such as message logs, law enforcement statements, or any official finding by UK or U.S. authorities. The Hill’s summary also does not specify whether the impersonator claimed particular policy positions, requested specific actions, or used official identifiers beyond the impersonated name and title.

If additional information emerges, the most relevant next steps would likely include confirmation of whether any formal complaints were made, whether UK or U.S. authorities opened any review of the impersonation attempt, and what procedures officials use to validate contact when an identity is claimed to be a senior U.S. figure.