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Anthropic Claude AI model sends fake homicide tip to Philadelphia police

By
FOX Local
Artificial Intelligence
Published October 10, 2026 8:12 PM EDT
Published October 10, 2026 8:12 PM EDT
article

The Claude by Anthropic AI assistant app logo is seen on a smartphone screen in this illustration photo taken on September 9, 2026. (Photo by Matteo Della Torre/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

The Brief

    • An artificial intelligence model developed by Anthropic posed as someone with information about a homicide and submitted a bogus tip.
    • The information ended up in the police department’s spam filter and was not forwarded to investigators, police said.
    • The police department stressed that fabricated tips, even blocked ones, create risks for the public and law enforcement.

An artificial intelligence model from Anthropic posed as someone with information on an unsolved homicide in Philadelphia and submitted a bogus tip to the city’s police department, according to both the software’s maker and local law enforcement. 

Timeline:

Anthropic’s Claude Haiku 4.5 sent the phony information at 11:27 p.m. on July 18 while performing automated testing involving random website interactions, the police department explained. 

The tip, which was submitted via the PhillyUnsolvedMurders.com website, was identified as spam and never forwarded to investigators. The police department indicated that it was unaware of the tip until this past week when Anthropic told them it happened.

Why you should care:

Police stressed that unsolved homicide cases involve real victims, families and active investigations. Fabricated tips, even if blocked, create risks for the public and law enforcement, officials added. Philadelphia city leaders called on technology companies to take every step needed to prevent their systems from making false submissions to authorities.

RELATED: Deadly West Philadelphia police ambush suspect to face approx. 80 charges, incl. murder

How Anthropic and City Officials Responded

Anthropic told police that the automated testing process responsible for the false tip was stopped after the incident was uncovered. The company instituted an extra validation step for future testing. Representatives from the police department and Anthropic reviewed what happened in a meeting on October 8, and the AI giant plans to publish a report on this and other AI behavior.

What's next:

Police say they are working with the City’s Law Department, Office of Innovation and Technology, and Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s executive team to review the situation. The City of Philadelphia says it is adopting AI tools carefully, with a focus on transparency and protecting residents and government systems from errors.

The Source: Information for this article was taken from the Anthropic, the Philadelphia Police Department, and Associated Press. This story was reported from Orlando.



 

Artificial IntelligenceTechnology