OpenAI disclosed Russian and Iranian influence operations and banned related ChatGPT accounts

OpenAI disclosed and banned ChatGPT accounts used by two influence operations, one from Russia and one from Iran, both of which used fake identities to plant content with legitimate media outlets rather than merely running social media accounts. The Russian operation, codenamed Dark Clark, spread disinformation in Latin America to smear Ukraine and disrupt local politics, controlling a think tank through fictional personas and potentially involving local employees without their knowledge; forged audio and documents triggered fact-checks and official denials in Ecuador and Peru. OpenAI rated it level 5 out of 6 on the Breakout Scale, calling it the first level 5 case in two and a half years of reporting. The Iranian operation, codenamed Bogus Bylines, used 7 fake journalists to publish nearly 100 articles about the US-Iran conflict on global online media outlets and generated social media comments, but it gained almost no traction. OpenAI said both operations primarily used AI for internal report writing and adapting propaganda content into different languages.