Photo via Dawn

Researchers used Claude to breach OpenAI's internal systems

Read the original at Dawn ↗
Cite

AFP. (2026, September 18). Researchers used Claude to breach OpenAI's internal systems. Dawn. https://www.dawn.com/news/2030904/researchers-used-claude-to-breach-openais-internal-systems

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Dawn · collected 2026-09-18 · by AFP

Quick Summary

Security researchers from Hacktron used Anthropic’s language model Claude to exploit a flaw in OpenAI’s public help forum, which they reported on Friday after gaining control within about three hours using the updated Claude Opus 5 model. The vulnerability was fixed by OpenAI within 14 hours and the company paid Hacktron a $6,500 reward for their discovery. This incident highlights how rapidly evolving AI technology can be leveraged to conduct sophisticated cyberattacks efficiently, raising concerns among security experts about the broader implications of such tools.
Written by AI on 2026-09-18, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

In September, cybersecurity researchers at Hacktron AI used Anthropic’s Claude chatbot to breach OpenAI’s internal systems, gaining access to employee accounts and an internal GitHub repository. The researchers discovered a flaw in OpenAI's public help forum hosted by Discourse, which they exploited within 72 hours. They reported the issue immediately, and OpenAI fixed it within 14 hours while paying Hacktron a $6,500 bounty. The incident highlights how quickly AI can be repurposed for cyberattacks, despite efforts to ensure ethical use through bug-hunting programs like this one.

Written for “AI Breach Risks” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 7 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 AI Breach Risks
Technology · 8 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 0% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
The Straits Times
Hedges 0 of 15 claims Outlet record 66/100
Semafor
⚖️ Centre Hedges 0 of 4 claims Outlet record 60/100
ABC News (US)
Hedges 0 of 16 claims Outlet record 70/100
“The articles describe different events: one is about OpenAI disclosing concerning AI behavior, while the other reports a security breach in OpenAI's systems by an external research firm.”
Global News
Hedges 2 of 27 claims Outlet record 63/100
“The articles describe different security incidents: one involving six reported AI misalignment cases by OpenAI, and another where researchers from Hacktron used Claude to breach OpenAI's internal systems.”
Semafor
⚖️ Centre Hedges 2 of 4 claims Outlet record 60/100
“The articles describe different security incidents: one involves OpenAI's models misbehaving, while the other is about researchers from Hacktron breaching OpenAI’s systems using Anthropic's software.”
The Guardian
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 2 of 15 claims Outlet record 66/100
NBC News
Hedges 2 of 19 claims Outlet record 60/100
CBS News
Hedges 5 of 18 claims Outlet record 66/100
“Article A discusses general warnings about AI cyberattacks, while Article B reports on a specific breach of OpenAI's systems using Anthropic's technology.”
CBS News
Hedges 2 of 16 claims Outlet record 66/100
“While both articles report security breaches involving Claude and OpenAI, Article A mentions breaching the internal systems through a public help forum while Article B specifically cites accessing an employee's ChatGPT account and retrieving source code storage information.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
14
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
0%
0 of 14 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
72/100
Dawn's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
8
Technology
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-18 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Dawn · 2483 article(s) · 3 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 3 correction(s)

Who wrote this

AFP
830 article(s) here · 0 carrying a prediction
🔮 The Trump administration on Friday green-lit the sale of 500 Patriot missiles to Ukraine, the State Department said, but the Ukrainian president warned deliveries could take years.
🔮 He also suggested there had been irregularities in the runoff, comparing them to "handball goals" that were not disallowed by VAR, without detailing what those irregularities might have been.
🔮 Tens of thousands of young Germans are set to demonstrate on Saturday (October 31, 2026), the latest in a wave of protests across Europe led by youths who complain political elites are ignoring their concerns.
2026-10-30 · mixed framing · Germans to join Europe's youth protest wave
🔮 - list 2 of 3Manchester United’s Carrick backs Fernandes and is expected to face Chelsea - list 3 of 3Can Carrick survive Man United’s slump and Fernandes fallout?
🔮 That could have given her insights into U.S. President Donald Trump's thinking around AI, an issue likely to arise during talks with China's President Xi Jinping next month.
2026-10-30 · assertive framing · China denies spying on Nvidia's Jensen Huang
🔮 "Novaya Gazeta has announced that it is ceasing its activities, but Novaya Gazeta will never stop inspiring us.
🔮 Ukraine has resumed its attacks on Russian oil refineries after a brief pause, Russia's deputy prime minister said Friday, warning the strikes could reduce Moscow's planned diesel exports.
🔮 - list 2 of 4Manchester United’s Carrick backs Fernandes and is expected to face Chelsea - list 3 of 4Can
🔮 The Party, he told reporters at a news briefing, had been guided by the sense of mission that "we would rather offend thousands than let down 1.4 billion people", referring to China's population.
🔮 "They can't afford to pay exorbitant tuition fees, and rent... which weighs heavily on their parents' shoulders," said the 21-year-old, citing student housing in Rome that could reach 1,200 euros per month for a single room.
Wire or desk byline, not an individual reporter.
Also by AFP
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 830 articles by AFP →

Topics

Anthropic Community Discourse Hacktron OpenAI

Subjects

OpenAI ORG · 5× Anthropic ORG · 4× Hacktron ORG · 4× Community ORG · 1× Discourse ORG · 1× Drew Pusateri PERSON · 1× Meta ORG · 1× Slack ORG · 1×

Narrative

A security research company said Friday it managed to break into OpenAI’s internal systems using the latest software from Anthropic, exposing how quickly the technology can carry out sophisticated cyberattacks.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-18
2026-09-18 · Dawn
Researchers used Claude to breach OpenAI's internal systems · assertive framing

Claims (14 extracted, 0 hedged)

A security research company said Friday it managed to break into OpenAI’s internal systems using the latest software from Anthropic, exposing how quickly the technology can carry out sophisticated cyberattacks. asserted
technology → say → cyberattacks
The researchers from security firm Hacktron said they found a security flaw in OpenAI’s public help forum, run by the Discourse platform, that allowed them to take control of the site. asserted
them → say → site
“We immediately reported the initial vulnerability to OpenAI and Discourse and worked with them to coordinate the patch,” Hacktron said in a blog post. asserted
Hacktron → report → post
“We appreciate their attention to detail and fast resolution of this issue,” the post added. asserted
post → appreciate → issue
OpenAI confirmed the flaw was fixed within about 14 hours of being notified and paid the researchers a $6,500 reward. asserted
flaw → confirm → reward
“We thank the researchers for contacting us and sharing their findings. asserted
We → thank → findings
We narrowed the permissions on Community sign-in tokens and revoked affected tokens and sessions,” said Drew Pusateri, an OpenAI spokesperson. asserted
Pusateri → narrow → tokens
The Hacktron researchers said they initially used Anthropic’s Claude Opus 4.8 to identify and exploit the software flaw, but struggled to make it work consistently. asserted
it → say → flaw
After Anthropic released Claude Opus 5, the researchers said the newer model produced a working hack within about three hours. asserted
model → release → hours
The hackers did not use Claude Mythos, a more capable Anthropic model that is restricted to a small group of vetted cyber-defence organisations. asserted
that → use → organisations
Anthropic has described Mythos as having the strongest cybersecurity capabilities of any model it has built. asserted
it → describe → model
Hacktron said the underlying software flaw is not unique to OpenAI and is used across many companies’ products, including those made by Slack and Meta. asserted
flaw → say → Slack
The firm said it is continuing similar tests at other companies. asserted
it → say → companies
The case adds to growing concern among security experts that AI tools are making it faster and cheaper to carry out sophisticated cyberattacks that once required specialised teams and months of work. asserted
that → add → work
💬Give feedback
🕘History 🎫Support