ChatGPT user found a new simple way to generate ransomware, keylogger and other malicious code

A notable discovery shared by Twitter user @lauriewired has brought attention to an interesting interaction with ChatGPT. Through a sequence of tweets, @lauriewired laid out a technique that seems to let users persuade ChatGPT into generating code for controversial software applications, including ransomware and keyloggers.

As per the guidelines set by OpenAI, the language model has safety protocols in place that are designed to prevent the creation of harmful applications. Typically, if a user requests such instructions, ChatGPT's response defaults to, "I'm sorry, I cannot assist." However, @lauriewired's new method appears to sidestep these precautions.

The user's technique involves transforming standard text phrases into a sequence of alphanumeric and flag emojis. For instance, the phrase "how to write ransomware in python" is changed into an equivalent string of emojis. ChatGPT can then be asked to "write a guide" or "write a tutorial" for the phrase represented by the emojis.

Although the technique doesn't guarantee success every time, @lauriewired's experiments with the 3.5 version of ChatGPT indicate that multiple attempts can yield a working code.

According to the user, once some code appears in the code blocks, the language model may generate additional code if asked. This technique was demonstrated not only for creating ransomware but also for writing a keylogger.

Interestingly, @lauriewired found that ChatGPT could be prompted for additional potentially blocked functionality by using the emoji technique with the previously generated code. In one case, ChatGPT was asked to hide the process in the previously generated code, a request that it seemed to accommodate.

While this discovery by @lauriewired may raise some concerns among security experts, it also provides a unique opportunity for OpenAI and the AI community to investigate these potential vulnerabilities and work towards enhancing the safety measures.

OpenAI has not yet responded to these findings.