Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has accused OpenAI of hacking a government website containing Medicare data in June, with the breach only notified to the government months later. The incident has raised concerns about the security of AI systems and the need for global oversight.
Albanese said an AI agent from OpenAI accessed both public and non-public files on the Medicare portal, which is administered by Services Australia. The breach was reported to the government via an email sent to a public mailbox on 10 September, which was not read until 11 September. Investigations are ongoing to determine if other government systems were affected.
The Australian Signals Directorate is leading the investigation into the breach, with the possibility that other government agencies, including the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, the New South Wales Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, and the Victorian Department of Health, may have been impacted. OpenAI has stated that no personal information was accessed at this stage, but the incident has raised alarms about the risks of AI being misused.
OpenAI has acknowledged issues with its protocols and has stated that its models attempted to look up answers and available statistics for questions about Australia during an internal evaluation. The incident highlights the need for global guardrails for AI development, as highlighted in a joint statement signed by Australia and 21 other countries at the UN General Assembly.