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Is your AI model secretly poisoned? 3 warning signs

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Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET

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ZDNET's key takeaways

Model poisoning weaponizes AI via training data.

"Sleeper agent" threats can lie dormant until a trigger is activated.

Behavioral signals can reveal that a model has been tampered with.

AI researchers have for years warned about model collapse, which is the degeneration of AI models after ingesting AI slop. The process effectively poisons a model with unverifiable information, but it's not to be confused with model poisoning, a serious security threat that Microsoft just published new research about.

Also: More workers are using AI than ever - they're also trusting it less: Inside the frustration gap

While the stakes of model collapse are still significant -- reality and facts are worth preserving -- they pale in comparison to what model poisoning can lead to. Microsoft's new research cites three giveaways you can spot to tell if a model has been poisoned.

What is model poisoning?

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