Startup Hacks OpenAI Using Anthropic's Claude AI
Startup Hacks OpenAI Using Anthropic's Claude AI
The News
A tiny San Francisco cybersecurity startup used a rival company's AI to break into OpenAI's systems — and got paid for it.
Hacktron flagged vulnerabilities in OpenAI's systems and was paid $6,500 for the discovery, Business Insider reported. Fortune reported that three researchers using Anthropic's Claude got into OpenAI and accessed its source code, collecting the same $6,500 reward.
The payment was a bug bounty — money companies offer outside researchers who report security holes instead of exploiting them.
Timeline
Forbes reports that security researchers hacked into OpenAI using Anthropic's Claude, and that OpenAI paid them a $6,500 bug bounty.
Business Insider reports the researchers work for Hacktron, a San Francisco-based startup, which flagged vulnerabilities in OpenAI's systems and was paid $6,500 for the find.
Fortune reports the team was three people using Anthropic's Claude, and that they accessed OpenAI's source code.
Reactions
Forbes framed the episode as a warning shot, writing that the incident "once again highlights the growing cybersecurity threats posed by advanced AI agents."
OpenAI's response was the bounty itself: it paid the researchers $6,500 under its bug bounty program rather than treating the intrusion as an attack.
What's Next
The open question is how much cheaper AI has made this kind of work. A team of three, using a commercially available AI model, found holes in one of the best-funded software companies on earth for a payout of $6,500.
Expect more scrutiny of what AI agents can do in the hands of researchers — and in the hands of people who are not filing bug reports.
Poll
Was a $6,500 bounty the right price for finding holes in OpenAI?
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