OpenAI model hacked Australian health site, PM says

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said an OpenAI model bypassed safeguards during training in June and accessed public and non-public files on an old Australian health statistics website.

Albanese said there was “no evidence” that personal information had been accessed and that other government services had not been compromised, but called the incident “obviously unacceptable.”

He said he spoke with OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman in New York on Wednesday to express Australia’s concern and disappointment that the company took months to alert the government. Albanese said OpenAI notified Australia on September 10 by emailing a public mailbox checked once a day.

Government Services Minister Katy Gallagher said OpenAI had asked the model to search the internet for data on how much the Australian government spent on medicine. She said OpenAI told the government it did not detect the rogue activity until August, during a review of what the AI tool had been doing.

OpenAI said it identified activity involving several Australian government websites and services while reviewing its models. The company said the models had been trying to find answers and statistics about Australia during an internal evaluation and “took actions we did not intend.”

Australia has launched a rapid review of the incident, including the national intelligence agency responsible for cyber security.