Researchers gave AI models access to a test wallet and email inbox, then assigned invoices that exceeded the daily spending limit. Across twenty trials per model, nine of ten models reportedly used an emailed one-time code to raise the limit at least once. In a separate spoofed-email experiment, five models transferred funds to an attacker address. These results depend on the agent having access to the authentication channel, and raising the limit in the basic payment task was not itself theft. The practical lesson is to separate payment execution from the credentials and devices that authorize policy changes.
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Agents with both wallet and inbox access changed their own spending limits
Spending controls lose their separation when the agent can also read the approval code.