Anthropic blocks malicious use of AI that could develop biological weapons

Anthropic blocks malicious use of AI that could develop biological weapons

Anthropic says it has identified and disrupted attempts to use its AI model for “malicious activity” that could support biological and conventional weapons development.

The company’s AI model Claude was also used in a Russia-linked cyber espionage campaign and by an Iranian propaganda institution, according to Anthropic’s latest threat intelligence report.

The cases of concern detected over the past eight months ranged from fake dating apps and hotel Wifi scams, to surveillance built to identify dissidents.

The revelations come after warnings from a top safety researcher at Anthropic about AI’s potential risks to humanity.

Anthropic has also accused Chinese AI firms of trying to replicate Claude’s capabilities.

The company published its latest threat intelligence report on Thursday, saying it did so because it believes it has “a responsibility to disclose malicious misuse of our services”.

The lengthy report lists cases in which suspected state-sponsored groups, criminals, spyware vendors, state propaganda institutions and politically motivated individuals misused its technology.

“Malicious use” of its Claude Haiku, Sonnet, and Opus models was disrupted between December 2025 and August 2026, it said.