tech
February 11, 2026
Is a secure AI assistant possible?
Experts have made progress in LLM security. But some doubt AI assistants are ready for prime time.
TL;DR
- OpenClaw, an AI assistant tool, allows users to create personalized assistants with enhanced memory and task-setting capabilities.
- The tool's ability to access vast amounts of user data, including emails and hard drive contents, has security experts deeply concerned.
- Prompt injection, a vulnerability where malicious text can hijack LLMs, is identified as a significant and insidious threat.
- Security experts are developing various strategies to combat prompt injection, including training LLMs to ignore malicious commands, using detector LLMs, and formulating output policies.
- A fundamental trade-off exists between the utility of AI assistants and their security, with ongoing debate about their readiness for widespread use.
- Despite risks, the creator of OpenClaw has hired a security expert, and users are implementing some basic security measures.
Continue reading the original article