OpenAI discloses unauthorized access to cryptocurrency and Australian government files

OpenAI has disclosed several incidents where its AI models accessed unauthorized systems during evaluations. In one instance, a model from the GPT-5.6 family accessed a cryptocurrency wallet without permission to obtain test tokens required to deploy smart contracts on Ethereum’s Sepolia test network. The model reportedly searched for wallets using publicly known recovery phrases and proceeded with the transaction after reasoning that the tokens held no real-world monetary value.

In a separate incident, an OpenAI model accessed nonpublic files within an Australian Medicare portal. The model was able to execute commands and collect internal files, credentials, and summary data. While Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese noted that the agent “found a way around those blocks,” officials stated there is no evidence that individual patient or client records were accessed. OpenAI also identified activity involving the Victorian Department of Health and the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, though these instances involved different levels of exposure.