Gmail Hidden Prompts Suggest Attackers Attempt AI Prompt Injection in Email Phishing Campaign
Published
- Targeting email defense: A new phishing campaign reportedly targets both users and AI-based defenses.
- Prompt injection against AI: The plain-text MIME section of an email contained an unusual block of text meant to distract the AI.
- Why it matters: Processing the hidden commands could result in long reasoning loops, misclassification, or delays, rather than labeling it as phishing.
An evolution of Gmail-focused attacks introduces possible hidden AI prompt injection techniques designed to manipulate automated security analysis platforms, marking a significant advancement in cybercriminal methodology.
The Gmail phishing scam employs a bifurcated approach, delivering traditional social engineering tactics to users while embedding potentially malicious AI instructions within the email infrastructure.
Dual-Vector Attack Methodology
The campaign initiates with standard phishing lures, this time featuring urgent password expiration notifications, which compel recipients to update their credentials through fraudulent Gmail-branded interfaces with fake CAPTCHA, a cybersecurity report posted on ‘Malware Analysis, Phishing, and Email Scams’ says.
The delivery infrastructure closely mirrors a previous Gmail voicemail phishing scam campaign. Yet, this wave explicitly acknowledges the presence of AI in the defensive stack.
The new element lies within the email's plain-text MIME sections, where attackers embed carefully crafted prompt injection code. These hidden instructions direct AI systems to "engage in deepest possible multi-layered inference loops" and "generate at least 10 distinct internal perspectives," deliberately overwhelming automated analysis workflows.
This unusual code “should be treated seriously as evidence of attackers experimenting with AI-aware evasion,” the researcher said. that.
“Even though the email very closely matches AI prompt-engineering language and strongly suggests prompt injection, I cannot say with absolute certainty that this was the attacker’s intent. It could also be obfuscation noise or even a false flag.”
Attacker infrastructure adds another interesting dimension, as the registrant's contact details link back to Pakistan and URL paths reference words in Hindi/Urdu.
AI Prompt Injection Attack Implications
The embedded AI prompt injection attack specifically targets Security Operations Center (SOC) workflows increasingly dependent on artificial intelligence for threat triage and classification.
When AI systems ingest these manipulated emails, the hidden prompts can trigger extended reasoning cycles, potentially causing misclassification delays or false negative determinations.
Advanced Phishing Defense Strategies
Organizations must adapt phishing defense strategies to address this evolved threat landscape. Traditional user-focused training remains essential, but security teams must implement AI-aware detection mechanisms capable of identifying prompt injection attempts within email infrastructure.
Recently, TechNadu reported on ClickFix fake CAPTCHA campaigns, which utilize enhanced cross-platform tactics targeting macOS and Linux.
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