Hackers used Meta's AI-powered support chatbot to infiltrate high-profile Instagram accounts, including Barack Obama's White House account, the company confirmed on Monday. The breach also affected beauty retailer Sephora and US Space Force chief master sergeant John Bentivegna, according to 404 Media. Everyday users reported similar hijackings on Reddit and X over the weekend.
Security researchers and hacking groups posted videos and screenshots on Telegram showing how to steal an account. One video shared on X appears to show a hacker telling Meta's AI assistant to link the account to a new email address. The bot then sends a verification code to that email and asks the hacker to input the numbers in the chat interface. Once the correct number is pasted, a button to reset the password appears. In at least one video, the hacker used a virtual private network to spoof the account holder's location and avoid Meta's safeguards.
Meta said in a statement: 'This issue has been resolved, and we are securing impacted accounts.' It is unclear how many accounts were affected. Stolen account handles were listed for sale on Telegram, according to reports.
The breach raises concerns about reliance on AI for security measures such as passwords. Meta rolled out the AI support assistant globally on Facebook and Instagram earlier this year, with a press release stating it could 'take action for you on a growing set of requests' including resetting passwords. Meta has invested heavily in AI, with founder Mark Zuckerberg ordering a $145bn spend on AI infrastructure this year.
Aiden Sinnott, a principal threat researcher at cybersecurity firm Sophos, described the incident as a 'prompt injection' attack, where attackers manipulate AI chatbots into carrying out malicious actions. 'This type of attack will become increasingly common as more online services deploy these chatbots, often without adequate protections in place,' he said.
