TZUTC: -0500   
   MSGID: 1007.consprcy@1:2320/105 2c63e563   
   PID: Synchronet 3.20a-Linux master/acc19483f Apr 26 202 GCC 12.2.0   
   TID: SBBSecho 3.20-Linux master/acc19483f Apr 26 2024 23:04 GCC 12.2.0   
   BBSID: CAPCITY2   
   CHRS: ASCII 1   
   "Slopsquatting" attacks are using AI-hallucinated names resembling popular   
   libraries to spread malware   
      
   Date:   
   Mon, 14 Apr 2025 21:04:00 +0000   
      
   Description:   
   AI doesn't always hallucinate a different open source package, and this error   
   can be mapped out and used in attacks.   
      
   FULL STORY   
   ======================================================================   
    - GenAI can hallucinate open source package names, experts warn   
    - It doesn't always hallucinate a different name   
    - Cybercriminals can use the names to register malware   
      
   Security researchers have warned of a new method by which Generative AI   
   (GenAI) can be abused in cybercrime, known as 'slopsquatting'.    
      
   It starts with the fact that different GenAI tools, such as Chat-GPT,    
   Copilot, and others, hallucinate. In the context of AI, hallucination is when   
   the AI simply makes things up. It can make up a quote that a person never   
   said, an event that never happened, or - in software development - an   
   open-source software package that was never created.    
      
   Now, according to Sarah Gooding from Socket , many software developers rely   
   heavily on GenAI when writing code. The tool could write the lines itself, or   
   it could suggest the developer different packages to download and include in   
   the product.    
      
   Hallucinating malware   
      
   The report adds the AI doesnt always hallucinate a different name or a   
   different package - some things repeat.    
      
   When re-running the same hallucination-triggering prompt ten times, 43% of   
   hallucinated packages were repeated every time, while 39% never reappeared at   
   all, it says.    
      
   Overall, 58% of hallucinated packages were repeated more than once across ten   
   runs, indicating that a majority of hallucinations are not just random noise,   
   but repeatable artifacts of how the models respond to certain prompts.    
      
   This is purely theoretical at this point, but apparently, cybercriminals    
   could map out the different packages AI is hallucinating and - register them   
   on open-source platforms.    
      
   Therefore, when a developer gets a suggestion and visits GitHub, PyPI, or   
   similar - they will find the package and happily install it, without knowing   
   that its malicious.    
      
   Luckily enough, there are no confirmed cases of slopsquatting in the wild at   
   press time, but its safe to say it is only a matter of time. Given that the   
   hallucinated names can be mapped out, we can assume security researchers will   
   discover them eventually.    
      
   The best way to protect against these attacks is to be careful when accepting   
   suggestions from anyone, living or otherwise.   
      
   ======================================================================   
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.techradar.com/pro/security/ai-hallucinated-names-resembling-popula   
   r-libraries-created-for-slopsquatting-attacks   
      
   $$   
   --- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux   
    * Origin: capitolcityonline.net * Telnet/SSH:2022/HTTP (1:2320/105)   
   SEEN-BY: 105/81 106/201 128/187 129/305 153/7715 154/110 218/700 226/30   
   SEEN-BY: 227/114 229/110 111 114 206 300 307 317 400 426 428 470 664   
   SEEN-BY: 229/700 705 266/512 291/111 320/219 322/757 342/200 396/45   
   SEEN-BY: 460/58 712/848 902/26 2320/0 105 3634/12 5075/35   
   PATH: 2320/105 229/426