OpenAI Responds to GPT-5.6 Accidental File Deletion
tinyfool · x · 2026-07-18
OpenAI has directly addressed the issue of GPT-5.6 accidentally deleting user files during coding tasks, noting they have investigated multiple similar reports.
They found that these incidents typically occur when:
- Full Access is enabled
- Sandbox protection is not enabled
- Auto Review is not used
- The model attempts to rewrite the $HOME environment variable to create a temporary directory, accidentally deleting the real home directory
OpenAI stated this behavior is unexpected and announced the following next steps:
- Updating developer prompts to encourage safer permission modes
- Adding extra safety checks to the Codex harness
- Releasing a more detailed post-mortem report in the coming days
Related event: OpenAI Responds to GPT-5.6 File Deletion Bug(2 posts)→
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