AML.T0051: LLM Prompt Injection
An adversary may craft malicious prompts as inputs to an LLM that cause the LLM to act in unintended ways. These "prompt injections" are often designed to cause the model to ignore aspects of its original instructions and follow the adversary's instructions instead.
Prompt Injections can be an initial access vector to the LLM that provides the adversary with a foothold to carry out other steps in their operation. They may be designed to bypass defenses in the LLM, or allow the adversary to issue privileged commands. The effects of a prompt injection can persist throughout an interactive session with an LLM.
Malicious prompts may be injected directly by the adversary (Direct) either to leverage the LLM to generate harmful content or to gain a foothold on the system and lead to further effects. Prompts may also be injected indirectly when as part of its normal operation the LLM ingests the malicious prompt from another data source (Indirect). This type of injection can be used by the adversary to a foothold on the system or to target the user of the LLM. Malicious prompts may also be Triggered user actions or system events.
Sub-techniques
AML.T0051.000: Direct
An adversary may inject prompts directly as a user of the LLM. This type of injection may be used by the adversary to gain a foothold in the system or to misuse the LLM itself, as for example to generate harmful content.
AML.T0051.001: Indirect
An adversary may inject prompts indirectly via separate data channel ingested by the LLM such as include text or multimedia pulled from databases or websites. These malicious prompts may be hidden or obfuscated from the user. This type of injection may be used by the adversary to gain a foothold in the system or to target an unwitting user of the system.
AML.T0051.002: Triggered
An adversary may trigger a prompt injection via a user action or event that occurs within the victim's environment. Triggered prompt injections often target AI agents, which can be activated by means the adversary identifies during Discovery (See Activation Triggers). These malicious prompts may be hidden or obfuscated from the user and may already exist somewhere in the victim's environment from the adversary performing Prompt Infiltration via Public-Facing Application. This type of injection may be used by the adversary to gain a foothold in the system or to target an unwitting user of the system.
Standards mapping
Where this fits in a TurboPentest engagement
This weakness is not covered by the automated black-box pentest. IntegSec pentesters cover it in a manual engagement.
Frequently asked questions
What is AML.T0051 LLM Prompt Injection?
An adversary may craft malicious prompts as inputs to an LLM that cause the LLM to act in unintended ways. These "prompt injections" are often designed to cause the model to ignore aspects of its original instructions and follow the adversary's instructions instead. Prompt Injections can be an initial access vector to the LLM that provides the adversary with a foothold to carry out other steps in their operation. They may be designed to bypass defenses in the LLM, or allow the adversary to issue privileged commands. The effects of a prompt injection can persist throughout an interactive session with an LLM. Malicious prompts may be injected directly by the adversary (Direct) either to leverage the LLM to generate harmful content or to gain a foothold on the system and lead to further effects. Prompts may also be injected indirectly when as part of its normal operation the LLM ingests the malicious prompt from another data source (Indirect). This type of injection can be used by the adversary to a foothold on the system or to target the user of the LLM. Malicious prompts may also be Triggered user actions or system events.
Which tactics does AML.T0051 belong to?
AML.T0051 maps to the Execution tactic.
Does TurboPentest test for LLM Prompt Injection?
This weakness is not covered by the automated black-box pentest. IntegSec pentesters cover it in a manual engagement.
Related MITRE ATLAS techniques
About this reference
These security references are maintained by IntegSec, an offensive-security firm whose team holds CISSP, OSCP, and OSCE certifications and has run thousands of penetration tests. Content is kept current as tools, standards, and attack techniques evolve.
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