Agent Memory Is a Surface for Endogenous Authorization Laundering: False Authority Hits 50.2%
ChrisUniverse · x · 2026-09-05
arXiv paper 2609.01836 introduces "endogenous authorization laundering": when persistent memory misrepresents an agent's evolving authorization state, its own records can grant authority the underlying history never permitted—no external attack required.
- EAL-Bench measures how accurately persistent memory preserves authorization state and whether errors propagate to unauthorized actions
- Across procurement, cybersecurity, and finance, 5 LLM memory writers fabricated false authority for up to 50.2% of unauthorized requests; executors acted on stored false authority in 98.6% of trials
- Safeguards—provenance-backed permissions and bounded event sourcing—cut laundering substantially but reject more legitimate actions, exposing a safety-utility tradeoff
- Takeaway: persistent memory is part of an agent's effective authorization policy, not merely a performance component
Related event: Research Warns Agent Memory Enables Authorization Laundering(3 posts)→
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