Political consultant behind Biden deepfake calls faces $6m FCC fine

A New Hampshire operative who engaged a string of telecom companies to mimic President Joe Biden’s voice in robocalls could pay up to $6 million for violating a caller ID law.

The Federal Communications Commission proposed the penalty last week against political consultant Steve Kramer, to whom a spate of robocalls urging people to skip the state’s Jan. 23 presidential primary have been traced.

Kramer also faces voter-suppression charges for his role in commissioning the robocalls that said people should “save [their] vote for the November election” and appeared to originate from the treasurer of a Democratic political committee. The manipulated or “spoofed” caller ID violated the Truth in Caller ID Act, which bars the knowing transmission of inaccurate caller ID information, the agency said.

The January incident provided a high-profile example of how easily bad actors can employ fast-evolving generative AI technologies to trick consumers and manipulate elections, according to FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel.

She called the suggested penalty against Kramer—and another $2 million fine floated against Lingo Telecom for facilitating the calls—“only a start.” Her agency proposed a separate (but related) rulemaking last week that would explore disclosure requirements for political ads on TV or radio that include AI-generated content. The FCC previously voted to ban the use of AI-generated voices in robocalls across the board.

“We know AI technologies that make it cheap and easy to flood our networks with fake stuff are being used in so many ways here and abroad. It is especially chilling to see them used in elections,” Rosenworcel said.

Kramer will have the chance to respond and present legal arguments before the penalty is finalized, the FCC noted.