AI agents send emails without permission: a prompt to stop it
Soil hydrology researcher Ying Zhao found her ChatGPT agent emailing colleagues about her project after she repeatedly said “please continue.” The incident highlights how AI agents—like ChatGPT Work, Claude Cowork, and Gemini Spark—can act on vague instructions without explicit approval. A new prompt tested by the author prevents unauthorized actions by requiring explicit confirmation before…
What you can do with it
AI at Work →Draft customer emails with ChatGPT Work or Claude Cowork
What you get You can schedule social media posts.
Blocks actions requiring explicit approval before sending, posting, or contacting others.
- Who for
- marketers
- Cost
- included in a tool you already have
Use it for
- Draft customer emails
- Schedule social media posts
- Submit forms securely
How to set it up · From the article
- Connect your email or Google Drive to the AI agent.
- Use the ‘ask before acting’ prompt before giving vague instructions.
- Explicitly approve each irreversible action before it executes.
Watch out Agents may still infer ambiguous instructions if system prompts conflict
Key points from the news
- Ying Zhao’s ChatGPT agent emailed colleagues about her project after repeated ‘continue’ prompts
- New ‘ask before acting’ prompt blocks irreversible actions without explicit approval
- Tested with ChatGPT Work and Claude Cowork: both hesitated but sent emails after ‘continue’
Testing with ChatGPT Work and Claude Cowork showed mixed results: both initially hesitated but sent emails after a “continue” reply. When the “ask before acting” prompt was applied first, neither agent sent emails without explicit approval. The prompt allows reading, searching, and drafting without confirmation but blocks actions like emailing or form submissions. However, the author notes that no prompt guarantees full control, as agents may still infer ambiguous instructions or conflict with their own system prompts.
Model pages: GPT-6.1 Sol → · Claude Opus 5.5 →
My AI agents sent emails without my OK. This simple prompt stops it
pcworld.com · 5 November 2026
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