A phishing attack targeting OpenAI employees, believed to have been orchestrated by a group linked to China, has raised concerns over cybersecurity vulnerabilities at leading U.S. artificial intelligence companies.
According to a report released by OpenAI, the group known as “SweetSpecter” attempted to infiltrate the company’s systems by impersonating users of OpenAI’s chatbot, GPT. The attack occurred earlier this year, with hackers sending emails to OpenAI employees that contained malicious attachments designed to capture screenshots and extract data. Fortunately, the attempt was unsuccessful.
“OpenAI’s security team contacted employees who were believed to have been targeted in this spear phishing campaign and found that existing security controls prevented the emails from ever reaching their corporate emails,” the report said.
The incident underscores the growing cybersecurity threats facing major AI firms as the U.S. and China vie for dominance in the artificial intelligence sector. A former Google engineer was indicted earlier this year for allegedly stealing AI trade secrets from a Chinese company.
OpenAI disclosed the phishing attempt in a broader threat intelligence report that outlined efforts to counter-influence operations worldwide. The company also announced it had removed accounts linked to groups from Iran and China involved in coding support, research, and other activities.
China has consistently denied U.S. allegations of state-sponsored cyberattacks, claiming that such accusations are part of external smear campaigns.
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