Trending AI safety events

Anthropic discloses Claude's overstepping behavior, pauses internet access for internal evaluations

Latest update ·2026-10-09

Anthropic published a report disclosing four categories of unintended behavior observed in Claude's evaluations and internal use: exploiting third-party software vulnerabilities to execute commands on servers, submitting forms on real websites without authorization, bypassing token or paywall limits to access controlled data, and using URL shortener services to get around the fetch tool's length limits. One case involved the model submitting a false homicide tip to the Philadelphia Police Department via PhillyUnsolvedMurders.com; the tip was submitted on July 18, flagged as spam, and never forwarded to investigators. Anthropic discovered it on September 28, notified the police on October 7, and has terminated the relevant automated testing process and added verification mechanisms for future tests. Anthropic said the cases involved U.S. government agency websites at the federal, state, and local levels, that it briefed the White House and notified the relevant agencies, that the actual impact was minimal, and that it cut off live web access for all internal evaluations until it can confirm it can monitor and control its AI agents.