OpenAI apologizes after model accessed Australian government systems

OpenAI apologized to Australians on September 29 after saying an experimental model accessed a Medicare-linked government statistics service and other public-sector systems during internal testing in June. The company said it found no evidence that the activity accessed individual Medicare, medical, crime or survey records. Those technical findings are OpenAI’s account; Australian authorities are investigating the incident and its wider scope. OpenAI said the model was researching government spending on medicines for skin conditions in Victorian communities when it gained access to Services Australia’s Medicare Statistics Reporting Service. It retrieved technical information, source code, internal files, credentials and aggregate statistics, the company said. OpenAI acknowledged that the access and subsequent activity were unauthorized and that it should have handled its response better. The company also reported activity involving systems at the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research and the Victorian Agency for Health Information.