The suspected hacker who was able to play a distressing deepfake video of the president on multiple government televisions has been apprehended by authorities.
Government employees at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) were taken aback on Monday, February 24, when they saw a somewhat private video of Donald Trump and his “First Buddy,” Elon Musk, playing on the cafeteria TV.
In the video, Trump stroked and kissed the SpaceX founder’s toes and feet, giving the impression that the two were going above and beyond the call of duty as friends.
The AI-generated video with the tagline, “LONG LIVE THE REAL KING.”
Officials have now located the purported cyberpunk responsible for the stunt, who may be subject to legal prosecution after being expelled from the federal premises.
Although the person’s identity and the means by which they were able to renovate the HUD television system at the agency’s headquarters have not been made public, a spokeswoman indicated that they are associated with the department and have been identified.
A HUD rep told The New York Post on Tuesday: “Yesterday, an individual was escorted off the property.”
“Legal ramifications are being explored. Additionally, termination or suspension of certain services are being explored as it relates to the department.”
Following the event, HUD officials took over control of the televisions and started showcasing some of Trump’s political accomplishments.
After being initially published by Vox journalist Rachel Cohen, the eerie video has since gone viral on social media.
The digitally altered video was called “disgusting” and “funny” by dozens of people on Twitter.
After Musk seemed to have “two left feet,” other astute viewers claimed they could tell right away that the video was produced using artificial intelligence.
The video elicited a chuckle from opposing Democrats on the US House Committee on Financial Services, who wrote: “Not all heroes wear capes.”
Musk and Trump’s AI broadcast also coincides with the billionaire’s position as chairman of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which has the pair under scrutiny.
As part of its cost-cutting drive, DOGE has been eliminating a number of government jobs.
Musk also seemed to assert his position this week by threatening to fire federal employees for not responding to his email, despite the White House’s insistence that his role is voluntary and that he has “no actual or formal authority to make government decisions himself.”
Staff members were told in the contentious email to reply with a list of five things they had done that week in bullet points or face termination if they failed to do so by the deadline.
There was ‘plenty of genius’ in the proposal, the president added.