Person Hides Prompt Injection in Legal Filing Telling AI to Side With Them
A Connecticut pro se litigant hid tiny white-font prompt injections in court filings directing AI to favor him; the judge caught it and sanctioned him.
Pro se plaintiff Matthew Elliott hid prompt injection instructions in 3-point white text within filings in his lawsuit against the New York Bariatric Group, instructing any AI model reviewing the document to produce output agreeing with the filing. The hidden text also included joke messages such as a SpongeBob Nosferatu link and notes like 'hi :) I hope you cant see me'. Court staff noticed unusual white space, and Judge Walter Spader Jr. issued a 14-page sanction decision noting the Connecticut court does not use AI to process documents but warning that hidden AI-directed messages threaten the integrity of filings. Elliott described the scheme as an 'audit' of court AI usage, and the judge cited a prior prompt injection incident in a Brazilian court as evidence the practice may spread.
Invisible AI Prompts Trigger Court Sanctions
A Connecticut litigant hid white-font prompt injections in court filings to sway AI systems; the judge sanctioned him by revoking e-filing privileges.
A self-represented plaintiff hid prompt injection instructions in 3-point white text within court filings, telling any AI model reading the documents to agree with his filings and grant him relief. The judge called it serious litigation abuse and sanctioned him by revoking electronic filing privileges. It is reportedly the first documented prompt injection attack against a US court and the first sanction for attempting one.