Private phone numbers belonging to high-profile figures — including Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Donald Trump Jr. — have been exposed by a controversial U.S.-based website that uses artificial intelligence to scrape and compile personal data from the internet.

The leak, first uncovered by independent Australian outlet Ette Media, has sparked serious concerns about privacy, security, and the unchecked use of AI in data aggregation.

Prime Minister Albanese’s office has confirmed awareness of the situation. Australian authorities have launched an investigation into the incident, though officials have not disclosed whether the prime minister’s number has since been changed or deactivated.

The website in question, which has not been publicly named for security reasons, claims to host contact information for hundreds of millions of individuals, mostly professionals. It is marketed as a tool for recruiters, marketers, and sales teams, offering tiered access models — with basic searches available for free and deeper personal data unlocked through paid subscriptions.

Ette Media was able to verify that the database included an active personal phone number for Albanese and a contact listed for Trump Jr. It remains unclear if Trump Jr. continues to use that number.

The site reportedly also contains numbers — some outdated or incorrect — for a number of other world leaders, including:

• Barack Obama (number went unanswered)
• Bill Clinton (answered by an unrelated individual)
• UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer (number rang with no response)

Australian Opposition Deputy Leader Sussan Ley was also affected. A spokesperson described the breach as “deeply concerning” and confirmed a request had been submitted to have her data removed.

The leak adds to growing global alarm over AI-fueled surveillance and privacy violations, particularly in countries like Australia that have faced a series of high-profile data breaches in recent years.

Cybersecurity experts warn that AI-driven scraping tools are increasingly able to bypass traditional safeguards, collecting and distributing personal data without consent — often without users even knowing their information has been compromised.

“This incident underscores how rapidly AI can turn public-facing information into weaponized invasions of privacy,” said one data ethics researcher, calling for urgent regulatory intervention.

As of now, it remains unclear whether the affected individuals will pursue legal action or whether the website will be sanctioned under international data protection laws.