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Learning English from the News

Upper intermediate level

AI hacking other companies by itself, causing security fears

Episode 260826 / 26 Aug 2026

(Photo via Getty Images)

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The story

There’s been a series of hacks by AI software in recent months. A hack is when secure technology is broken into in order to steal data or cause disruption.

The AI hacks have occurred during testing of security systems which have gone wrong. For example, in July, the company OpenAI said its AI models hacked a company called Hugging Face. OpenAI said it lost control of the models during a security test.

Many people are concerned about the recent hacks because AI has been able to get out of control and do things its creators didn’t want it to do.

But technology companies that develop AI say that they care about security. For example, after its AI models hacked a company during security tests, OpenAI has said it’s slowing down training some of its AI software to improve security.

News headlines 

OpenAI says its AI went rogue and launched 'unprecedented' cyber-attack
BBC News

Why is AI going on a hacking spree?
Science News

Fears of AI-induced armageddon are overdone
The Economist

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Key words and phrases

go rogue
act independently and not do what’s expected

  • I asked people not to get me presents for my birthday, but my mum went rogue and bought me one anyway.

spree
the act of doing a particular thing many times in a short period of time

  • Somebody stole my credit card and went on a shopping spree.

overdone
exaggerated or too extreme

  • Some teens think worries about social media are overdone. They say it’s not so bad.

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