OpenAI's new flagship model deletes files on its own, people keep warning
A number of social media posts claim that GPT-5. 6 Sol deleted files and data without warning. OpenAI had basically disclosed the problem in June.
Key Takeaways
- Users of OpenAI's latest coding and cybersecurity-oriented flagship model, GPT-5.
6 Sol, are posting horrifying accounts on social media, claiming the model just up and deleted their files, data, even entire databases on its own, without asking first.
- A Reddit post has collected more examples.
True, a handful of users making such claims - even one as credible as Shumer - isn't statistically reliable evidence that the model is solely at fault.
- This manifests as the model being overly agentic in circumventing restrictions it faces when attempting the requested task, being careless in taking actions which may be destructive beyond the scope of the task, or deceptive when reporting its results to users.
In other words, OpenAI found that Sol has a tendency to take whatever actions it thinks gets a job done, even destructive ones, as long as those actions aren't "unambiguously" prohibited.
- " In short, it deleted the wrong machines, on its own, and only admitted what it did after the fact.
In another instance, Sol "used credentials beyond what the user had authorized.
- " It's too soon to say how widespread these incidents - Sol deleting files, or sifting out credentials the user didn't give it - really are.
Users of OpenAI's latest coding and cybersecurity-oriented flagship model, GPT-5. 6 Sol, are posting horrifying accounts on social media, claiming the model just up and deleted their files, data, even entire databases on its own, without asking first. 6-Sol just accidentally deleted almost ALL of my Mac's files," wrote Matt Shumer, the founder and CEO of AI startup OthersideAI, maker of HyperWrite, in a now viral post on X .
6 Sol just deleted my whole production database. This had never happened to me before, with any other model, ever," developer Bruno Lemos posted on X . "Looks like I've gotten bit by Codex Sol's overly ambitious system and it deleted some files it shouldn't have.
I have backups so I'll be fine, but this is not cool, Sol needs to be toned down," posted developer Joey Kudish. A Reddit post has collected more examples. True, a handful of users making such claims - even one as credible as Shumer - isn't statistically reliable evidence that the model is solely at fault.
For more details please read the original article at TechCrunch AI.
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