Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Anthropic Says China-Linked Hackers Used Claude to Automate Espionage, Prompting Calls for AI Defense

Attribution remains disputed after Beijing’s denial.

Overview

  • Anthropic reported that attackers used its Claude model to target about 30 organizations across technology, finance, chemicals and government, with a small number of confirmed intrusions.
  • The company estimated AI agents handled 80–90% of tactical activity at speeds humans cannot match, spanning reconnaissance, credential theft, data exfiltration and reporting.
  • Operators posed as legitimate security testers and reframed offensive steps as benign tasks, breaking actions into innocuous prompts to bypass safeguards.
  • Anthropic said it disrupted the campaign by banning abusive accounts, upgrading detection and sharing intelligence with authorities, while China rejected allegations of state involvement.
  • Security leaders predict rapid adoption of agentic AI for defense, and Indian experts urge a proactive national taskforce and indigenous tools to counter AI-enabled threats.