ChatGPT Account Take Over Bug Let Hackers Gain Online Account
A critical security vulnerability has been uncovered in ChatGPT by a renowned security analyst and bug hunter, Nagli. The vulnerability enables hackers to gain control of user’s accounts quickly and easily, resulting in unauthorized access to sensitive data, commonly referred to as an “Account Take Over.”
The vulnerability is attributed to a web cache deception vulnerability that can arise when a website’s server cache is either set up or used incorrectly. Hackers can trick web servers’ caching systems, giving them access to users’ accounts. It enables attackers to conduct a variety of malicious activities once they have gained access to a target system or device.
The detection of the vulnerability is attributed to Nagli’s swift action in reporting to the ChatGPT team after identifying the issue. This action helped to prevent potential harm and ensure the continued safety of ChatGPT users.
How Hackers Exploit ChatGPT Account Take Over Bug
The ChatGPT Account Take Over bug enables attackers to manipulate cached web pages or create fake ones to deceive users. Here are the five key attack flow points that provide an accessible overview of the complete attack flow:
- An attacker exploits a web cache deception vulnerability to access a victim’s ChatGPT account with a single click.
- The attacker could compromise any user’s account and take over it completely.
- The hacker could trick web servers’ caching systems, giving them access to users’ accounts.
- The attacker can read a victim’s sensitive data from the cached response if they manipulate the Load Balancer into caching their request on a custom path.
- After gaining access to sensitive user information, the hacker could use it to generate a request to https://chat.openai.com/api/auth/session/victim.css. The server will cache a CSS file, in the process saving the user’s session content, data, and access token due to the “.css” extension.
If left unchecked, this web cache deception vulnerability could give attackers access to sensitive user information, including chat histories, billing information, and OpenAI’s API server information.
Preventing and Mitigating the ChatGPT Account Take Over Bug
There are several ways to mitigate the ChatGPT Account Take Over bug, including:
- Regularly checking the server caching system set up.
- Regularly checking the web server’s cache system.
- Ensuring that server caches are appropriately used.
- Providing regular security training to employees and users to avoid accidental information disclosure.
- Ensuring that users have unique login credentials that are regularly updated.
By following these measures, the ChatGPT Account Take Over bug can be prevented and its impact mitigated.
