The official phone number of the White House appeared on some Android phones as "Epstein Island" for a brief period before Google fixed it, The Washington Post reported. It came to light when The Post reporters called the Oval Office this week.
The calls reached the correct number, but the unusual label appeared on the screen instead of the "White House". The issue affected mainly Android devices, particularly Google Pixel phones, while iPhone users saw no name at all.
"It was not a wrong number. That's what the phone displayed when some Washington Post journalists called the White House switchboard," The Post reported.
Soon after, the American daily reported the issue to Google. A company spokesperson, Matthew Flegal, stated that it originated from a "fake edit" someone had made in Google Maps. This incorrect information briefly appeared in the call ID feature of some Android phones.
Google confirmed the error had been corrected, and the White House now appeared correctly on all devices. Calls to the number now show only the phone number, with no name attached.
Flegal added that the edit violated Google's policies, and the user responsible had been blocked from making further edits.
Mike Blumenthal, an expert who helps businesses manage their Google listings, has long criticised Google for how easy it is for someone to change business names or phone numbers in Google's systems, including Google search, Google Maps, and the caller ID feature on phones.
"It's unclear how long the 'Epstein Island' name was attached to the White House switchboard number or how many callers may have seen it," he told the outlet.
The White House has faced several questions about Trump's past friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, who died by suicide in 2019 in federal custody at a Manhattan jail. Epstein had been charged with sex trafficking of minor girls.
Trump has said he knew Epstein socially but had a falling-out in the mid-2000s, adding that he was unaware of Epstein's criminal activities.
Some of the illegal activities, according to prosecutors, took place at Epstein's private Caribbean estate on Little St. James Island. This estate has become widely known as "Epstein Island".
