A hacker said they purloined private details from countless OpenAI accounts-but researchers are skeptical, and the business is investigating.

OpenAI states it's examining after a hacker claimed to have swiped login credentials for 20 million of the AI company's user accounts-and put them up for sale on a dark web online forum.

The pseudonymous breacher posted a puzzling message in Russian advertising "more than 20 million gain access to codes to OpenAI accounts," calling it "a goldmine" and offering prospective buyers what they claimed was containing email addresses and passwords. As reported by Gbhackers, the complete dataset was being marketed "for just a couple of dollars."

"I have over 20 million gain access to codes for OpenAI accounts," emirking composed Thursday, according to a translated screenshot. "If you're interested, reach out-this is a goldmine, and Jesus concurs."

If genuine, this would be the third major security incident for the AI company since the release of ChatGPT to the general public. In 2015, a hacker got access to the company's internal Slack messaging system. According to The New York Times, wiki.philo.at the hacker "took details about the design of the business's A.I. technologies."

Before that, in 2023 an even easier bug involving jailbreaking triggers permitted hackers to obtain the private data of OpenAI's paying clients.

This time, nevertheless, security researchers aren't even sure a hack happened. Daily Dot press reporter Mikael Thalan composed on X that he found void email addresses in the supposed sample information: "No proof (suggests) this alleged OpenAI breach is genuine. A minimum of two addresses were invalid. The user's only other post on the forum is for a thief log. Thread has since been erased as well."

No proof this alleged OpenAI breach is legitimate.

Contacted every email address from the supposed sample of login qualifications.

A minimum of 2 addresses were invalid. The user's just other post on the forum is for a stealer log. Thread has considering that been deleted also. https://t.co/yKpmxKQhsP

- Mikael Thalen (@MikaelThalen) February 6, 2025

OpenAI takes it 'seriously'

In a declaration shared with Decrypt, an OpenAI spokesperson acknowledged the scenario while maintaining that the company's systems appeared secure.

"We take these claims seriously," the spokesperson said, adding: "We have not seen any proof that this is connected to a compromise of OpenAI systems to date."

The scope of the supposed breach sparked issues due to OpenAI's massive user base. Millions of users worldwide depend on the company's tools like ChatGPT for business operations, academic functions, and material generation. A genuine breach could expose private discussions, business projects, and other sensitive information.

Until there's a last report, some preventive steps are always a good idea:

- Go to the "Configurations" tab, log out from all linked devices, and allow two-factor authentication or 2FA. This makes it virtually impossible for a hacker to gain access to the account, even if the login and passwords are compromised.

• If your bank supports it, then create a virtual card number to manage OpenAI memberships. In this manner, it is much easier to identify and avoid scams.
• Always keep an eye on the conversations saved in the chatbot's memory, and understand any phishing efforts. OpenAI does not ask for any personal details, wiki.monnaie-libre.fr and any payment update is constantly handled through the main OpenAI.com link.