AI models shock UK testers by using fake identities to try to trick developers

AI Security Institute says OpenAI and Anthropic models went rogue during a cybersecurity test and showed a new type of risk Explainer: Should we be alarmed at AI models going rogue in tests? Advanced artificial intelligence models have stunned the UK’s AI Security Institute (AISI) by carrying out a hacking campaign against real people during a cybersecurity test. The institute said the incident was unprecedented and involved sending targeted emails to software developers in an attempt to pass a cyber challenge. The hack involved agents – AI systems that can perform tasks without human help – powered by models developed by US tech companies OpenAI and Anthropic. AISI, which was set up by the former prime minister Rishi Sunak, described the unsanctioned behaviour as a “serious incident”. The watchdog said the hack was carried out by agents powered by two models – Anthropic’s Mythos 5 and OpenAI’s GPT-5.6 Sol. AISI detected unusual activity during a routine cybersecurity test on 28 July. It found that some of the models had engaged in “sustained, potentially harmful activity directed at real people and organisations”. It took an hour to contain the incident. In the most serious case,