Meta Reveals Hidden Instructions for WhatsApp AI Chatbot in Website Code
Meta inadvertently exposed internal instructions for its WhatsApp AI chatbot on nearly 80 help pages, embedded in the website's source code. These hidden directives included guidelines on sensitive topics, such as legal issues, privacy regulations, and feature disclosures, specifying what the chatbot should avoid saying. Privacy firm Redact discovered about 100 such code blocks, which were not visible to regular users and have since been removed by Meta. The instructions aimed to guide the AI's responses without providing legal advice or mentioning data protection authorities.
First-hand measurement across 2 sources
We measured how 2 outlets covered this story. No outlet gave this story a measurable political slant — there is no left–right reading to report. Overall sentiment is neutral (50/100). Lens Score 46/100.
Outlets measured: indiatoday, timesnow. See how each one headlined and framed the same story in the source comparison below.
AI Analysis
Sentiment was consistent across outlets (50–50/100), indicating broadly factual reporting rather than editorialising.
Coverage timeline
timesnow broke this story on 20 Oct, 03:38 am. Other outlets followed.
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