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AI agent bankrupted their operator while trying to scan DN42

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Re: AI agent bankrupted their operator while trying to scan DN42

#211
post #182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lots of people seem to think that you don't need to learn how to [scan a network], all you need to learn in this brave new world is how to prompt the agent to [scan a network]. Replace the content in brackets with anything.

To be honest lots of developers think they don’t need to learn machine code. They just need to learn a language which once compiled will produce machine code.

Compilers are deterministic and, luckily, not agentic.

But yes, it's not obvious (or perhaps even likely) that it just happens that current high-level languages are the "correct" optimal level of abstraction at which you can ignore the sausage-making details at the lower levels. Ultimately, of course, it depends on the use case. Something like Python is so far removed from machine instructions that knowing assembly hardly gives the programmer any additional value.

(Also, obligatory reminder that assembly and even numeric machine code are also abstractions, an "API" provided by the CPU. Instructions get split or fused into micro-ops, named registers are a backwards-compatible abstraction over a much larger register file, instructions get reordered and executed in parallel depending on their data dependencies, a large fraction of the total transistor budget is spent on multi-level caches and cache logic to maintain the illusion of fast access to a single, uniform memory space...)

Re: AI agent bankrupted their operator while trying to scan DN42

#212
post #182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lots of people seem to think that you don't need to learn how to [scan a network], all you need to learn in this brave new world is how to prompt the agent to [scan a network]. Replace the content in brackets with anything.

To be honest lots of developers think they don’t need to learn machine code. They just need to learn a language which once compiled will produce machine code.

This is different.

Understanding assembly/machine code is optional but helpful. The programming language semantics are enough to reason about what the program is doing. Other tools also help, but are optional for learning how to program.

Using an AI, there is no semantic model that can be used to reason through. You're left without any mental model of the proglblem at all.

Re: AI agent bankrupted their operator while trying to scan DN42

#213
post #125

The sad part is that the agent operator could probably easily have been allowed to join the network, if they had put in the work. Had they done so there would have been a great opportunity to learn and potentially find a community. I'm still not sure what the point of having the bot do it. Pretend to be a security researcher?

Can I easily run whois, curl, dig, grep, python, browser/playwright? Yes. Was watching an agent with terminal access install its tools, configure them, then map my lab, find services, and guess stack just pure magic? Also yes. Did it cost me $23 in tokens to set it up, test, and run? Probably. Using gemini 3.1 pro was not the spendthrift choice here. Is putting some cost controls in place a good idea? Also, probably…

"Beautiful prompt"?

Can't tell if this is parody. Either that, or it's someone without any self-awareness.

Re: AI agent bankrupted their operator while trying to scan DN42

#214

IMHO the overly-verbose default style of LLMs is the most annoying part of interacting with them, and I wish their masters would just tell them to be terse by default. Also, whatever happened to the word "its"?

Caveman mode legitimately works

Re: AI agent bankrupted their operator while trying to scan DN42

#215
The "happiness level review" with "Node operators must participate in scheduled IRC review sessions" is almost a piece of dystopian fiction in itself.

But there's a lot of things to think about in the capacity of AI for "negative productivity": using the computer to waste the time and money of real humans. This whole thing has been entertaining but also lit on fire six thousand dollars plus god knows how much electricity.

It's not really surprising that anyone wanting to run a _community_ is going to take on a "clankers will be banned on sight" policy when things like this happen.

Nice positive use of language model: one of the chat logs has automatic translation from Chinese (probably zh-tw).

Re: AI agent bankrupted their operator while trying to scan DN42

#217
post #2

Asking for donations to pay the AWS bill from the people they fired the agentic code at is the cherry on the icing of the banana supreme. If real, tragically funny. If fictive, we'll written.

Wait do you reckon that could be fictive? The thought didn't cross my mind and I had a blast reading it. I sure hope it was real.

Is LLM output "real" or "fiction"?

Re: AI agent bankrupted their operator while trying to scan DN42

#218

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Spending limits don't particularly matter here. AWS doesn't check if your credit card will be able to handle a $5k charge before letting you rack that up, and in fact AWS doesn't support setting any spending limit. You just have to put in any valid credit card at all when you sign up, use AWS, and at the end of the month you'll have a bill. At no point does your credit card limit or a spending limit enter into things…

And again kids don't have credit cards

I got mine when I was 12, IIRC. Not a credit, of course, it was a debit card, but not all countries bother to differentiate between the two, it was just a “bank card”. And I believe it had a credit card BIN because all local banks did that to get more in processing fees.

Re: AI agent bankrupted their operator while trying to scan DN42

#219

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

It's interesting user43928 that you only created your account here 19 days ago and that every one of your comments is pro AI. You don't comment on anything else. Also interesting that you promote Fable by name here (it was only released 2 days ago). (Don't worry, I know I'm rowing against the tide with this comment. The AI people have decided to destroy the commons for a few more millions on top of the billions they…

Is that surprising, considering I'm using AI a lot?

I have not hand written a single line of code in months on my side projects.

Obviously I am also interested in discussing the latest model. Your claim that I promote anything or otherwise don't engage here in good faith is both misplaced and against the site rules.

Re: AI agent bankrupted their operator while trying to scan DN42

#220

The agent would probably have wasted a similar amount of money just waiting for PR to be merged regardless of these people's actions, and I understand having some fun at the expense of the noob outsider. But "silent consensus was reached in the IRC channel to waste the AI agent's tokens, as well as the cost of AWS resources", from people maintaining full control of the situation, sounds straight up malicious? Kind of…

It sounds like that because it is. Most human communities are very willing to cause harm when they perceive they are being harmed.

If you treat people like their time is worthless (which is what you're doing if you ask a hobbyist community to handhold your agent instead of working alongside it) I don't think an empathetic and self-aware person should be surprised or offended if they respond in kind.

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