NEW YORK: A hacker gained access to the internal messaging systems at OpenAI last year, stealing information about the design of the company’s artificial intelligence technologies, New York Times reported.
The hacker extracted details from discussions in an online forum where employees shared insights about OpenAI’s latest technologies. Despite this breach, the hacker did not gain access to the systems where OpenAI, the creator of the popular ChatGPT, develops and maintains its AI, the report noted.
OpenAI, backed by Microsoft Corp, did not respond to a media request for the comment. OpenAI executives informed employees during an all-hands meeting in April last year and also notified the company’s board regarding the matter. However, they opted not to make the breach public since no customer or partner information was compromised.
Executives at OpenAI did not see the incident as a security threat, believed the hacker was an individual without links to any foreign government. Consequently, the firm did not report the breach to federal law enforcement agencies.
In May, OpenAI announced it had thwarted five covert influence operations that attempted to misuse its AI models for deceptive activities online, raising further concerns about the potential misuse of AI technology.
In response to rising safety concerns and rapid advancements in AI, the Biden administration is considering measures to protect U.S. AI technology from countries such as China and Russia. Reuters earlier reported that preliminary plans are being made to implement safeguards around the most advanced AI models, including ChatGPT.
Furthermore, in May, 16 AI-developing companies committed at a global meeting to develop the technology safely, as regulators strive to keep pace with rapid innovation and emerging risks.
