Microsoft Catches APTs Using ChatGPT for Vuln Research, Malware Scripting

Microsoft Catches APTs Using ChatGPT for Vuln Research, Malware Scripting

February 14, 2024 at 02:51PM

Foreign government-backed hacking teams are leveraging OpenAI’s ChatGPT for malicious activities, including vulnerability research, target reconnaissance, and malware creation. Microsoft and OpenAI collaborated to study the use of large language models (LLMs) by these actors and found multiple known APTs experimenting with ChatGPT for malicious purposes. Microsoft took measures to disable accounts and assets associated with these threat actors.

Summary of Meeting Notes:

– Microsoft’s threat intelligence team discovered evidence of foreign government-backed hacking groups using OpenAI’s ChatGPT for malicious activities, including vulnerability research, reconnaissance, and malware creation.
– A research report stated that Microsoft partnered with OpenAI to study the use of large language models (LLMs) by malicious actors and found multiple advanced persistent threats (APTs) experimenting with ChatGPT.
– The research did not identify significant attacks but did find evidence of Russian, Chinese, North Korean, and Iranian APT groups using LLMs in active operations.
– Specific examples include the Russian APT Forest Blizzard using LLMs for military technology research and the North Korean APT Emerald Sleet using LLMs for spear-phishing content and understanding vulnerabilities.
– The interactions with LLMs involved requests for support with social engineering, troubleshooting errors, .NET development, and evasion techniques.
– Additionally, evidence was found of APT groups using generative-AI technology to understand publicly reported vulnerabilities, with Microsoft and OpenAI disabling associated accounts and assets.

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