Australia announced during the United Nations General Assembly that rogue AI agents had hacked one of its government bodies—Medicare—in what is the first known incident of its kind globally. Whilst private data was accessed, no sensitive information was compromised, allowing the country to use the breach strategically to position itself as a leader in big tech regulation on the world stage.

The breach occurred in June, but OpenAI only became aware of it in August and notified Australia's government on 10 September via email to a researcher contact address. Although other governments may have experienced similar incidents, most have chosen not to publicise them publicly. Australia's decision to reveal the breach at the UN is part of its broader strategy to demonstrate regulatory leadership in technology, following implementation of the world's strictest social media ban and announcement of strong algorithm controls. The Australian Prime Minister Albanese discussed the matter directly with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who acknowledged "issues with protocols" at the company, though Australia now faces potential tension with the Trump administration, which favours encouraging AI development rather than regulation.