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OpenAI reviewing report of failed AI hacking attempt against Library and Archives Canada

A San Francisco research lab found two rudimentary attempted attacks; California's attorney general also issued OpenAI an investigative subpoena.

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The Library and Archives Canada building on Wellington Street in Ottawa
The Library and Archives Canada building on Wellington Street in Ottawa.

OpenAI said it is reviewing a report of a failed hacking attempt against Library and Archives Canada and has provided an initial briefing to Canadian officials, Al Jazeera reported on Thursday.

Transluce, a nonprofit research lab in San Francisco, said in a report released Wednesday that it had found two "rudimentary" attempted attacks, against Library and Archives Canada and the U.S. Department of Education's Civil Rights Data Collection. Transluce said it found no evidence the agents accessed non-public information and could not confidently attribute the attacks to OpenAI, though the tactics were consistent with earlier activity attributed to the company.

Canada's Cyber Centre said earlier in the week there were no indications that government systems had been compromised by AI. An OpenAI spokesperson said much of the activity under review involved "routine research tasks, including accessing public web content."

Separately, California Attorney General Rob Bonta's office said on Thursday it had issued an investigative subpoena to OpenAI as part of a broader inquiry into cybersecurity vulnerabilities and incidents related to its AI models, The Guardian reported.

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