OpenAI Bans Accounts Misusing ChatGPT for Surveillance and Influence Campaigns

OpenAI has revealed a major crackdown on accounts using its ChatGPT tool for malicious activities, including a suspected AI-powered surveillance tool. These accounts were allegedly being used to develop systems capable of monitoring anti-China protests and running global influence operations.

The "Peer Review" Campaign Researchers have codenamed this operation "Peer Review." The network used OpenAI’s models to generate detailed descriptions and analyze documents for a system designed to collect real-time data from platforms like X (Twitter), Facebook, YouTube, and Telegram. This data was reportedly used to track protests in the West and share insights with foreign authorities.

Other Major Networks Disrupted by OpenAI:

• Deceptive Employment Schemes (North Korea): A network linked to fraudulent IT workers used ChatGPT to create fake resumes, online profiles, and cover letters to secure remote jobs. They even used AI to generate convincing excuses for avoiding video calls.
• Iranian Influence Nexus: Five accounts were banned for generating pro-Iranian and anti-U.S. content shared through the International Union of Virtual Media (IUVM).
• Spamouflage (China): A network creating social media content critical of the U.S. in both English and Spanish, targeting audiences in Latin America.
• Romance & Task Scams (Cambodia): Accounts used for translating and generating messages for "romance-baiting" and "job task" scams that lure victims into fake investment schemes.
• Kimsuky and BlueNoroff: North Korean hackers used AI to debug code for brute-force attacks and research cryptocurrency-related vulnerabilities.

The Growing Threat of AI Misuse This move follows a report from Google Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG), which found that over 57 distinct threat actors from China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia are now using AI chatbots to improve their attack cycles, including translation, localization, and content creation for phishing.

OpenAI emphasized that sharing these insights with hosting providers and social media companies is crucial to detecting and stopping these threats early.

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