University student arrested for AI-assisted harassment campaign
A university student in China was arrested by public security authorities for illegally obtaining over 20,000 student records and using AI-generated code to send harassing SMS messages containing obscene content to more than 2,000 students. The suspect exploited a mini-program vulnerability to batch-register accounts and manipulate verification codes, reportedly motivated by seeking stimulation and demonstrating technical skills.
What happened
A public security cybersecurity department broke up a case of illegal acquisition of computer information system data. The suspect, a university student named Hu Mou, illegally obtained over 20,000 student personal information records from a university system.
Using AI technology, Hu Mou exploited a technical vulnerability in a mini-program to batch-register accounts with stolen phone numbers, modified SMS verification codes to contain obscene content, and sent harassing short messages to over 2,000 students. The motive was reportedly to seek stimulation and show off technical skills.
Reported impact
Over 2,000 students received SMS messages with obscene content sent to them as part of the harassment campaign.
Governance controls
According to Chinese law, anyone who illegally acquires or sells personal information violates the Network Security Law Article 44. The case falls under Criminal Law Article 285(2), which provides penalties of up to three years imprisonment or detention for illegal intrusion into computer information systems and unauthorized data acquisition.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.