These groups then often sell that access through brokers, which often feed into fraudulent AI reseller networks that rotate in new stolen API keys and session tokens until they exhaust their usage. Malicious actors also use or purchase these stolen API keys and session tokens from brokers for their cyber attack operations.

How unauthorized labs access Anthropic’s models
Over the last several months, unauthorized labs have developed increasingly sophisticated methods to circumvent our defenses and harvest the capabilities of US frontier models. These labs generally access Anthropic’s models by routing requests through proxy services, also known as “transfer stations.” To circumvent our geographic restrictions and related controls, these proxy services create thousands of new accounts using false identities, fake or stolen credit cards, and stolen API keys. They will often use stolen API credentials belonging to legitimate companies or individuals to give unauthorized entities access to US frontier models. These fraudulent activities harm legitimate customers. The graphic below illustrates the life cycle of an illicit distillation campaign.