Hackers Exploit AI Summarizers With Hidden Prompts | CloudSEK Cybersecurity Warning
Cybersecurity experts reveal how hackers use hidden prompts and CSS obfuscation to exploit AI summarizers for ransomware delivery. Learn how “prompt overdose” works and how to defend against this AI-powered cyber threat.
NEWS
Qasim
8/27/20251 min read
Hackers Exploit AI Summarizers With Hidden Malicious Prompts
Security researchers have uncovered a new cyberattack method that exploits AI-powered summarization tools by embedding hidden malicious prompts into regular web content. According to CloudSEK, attackers use CSS-based obfuscation—such as invisible text, microscopic fonts, and off-screen positioning—to hide ransomware instructions from human readers while keeping them visible to AI models.
This technique, called “prompt overdose,” floods AI summarizers with repeated hidden commands that overshadow legitimate content. As a result, summaries generated by AI tools may contain only the attacker’s instructions, effectively turning summarization systems into unwitting payload delivery agents.
The method builds on the ClickFix scam, which tricked users with fake troubleshooting steps. The AI-focused version, however, scales more efficiently, reaching wider audiences through SEO manipulation and social media syndication.
Experts warn that reliance on AI summaries in email clients, browser extensions, and productivity tools creates a high-risk environment. To mitigate threats, organizations are advised to strip suspicious CSS attributes, deploy prompt sanitizers, and use pattern recognition systems to detect hidden ransomware payloads.
As AI integration expands, businesses must strengthen defenses against these AI-driven cybera
ttacks.