From what I can tell, this isn't actually a response/protection against prompt-injection (which is what I imagined from the article's title).
It seems to be just the AI responding to the word "disregard".
I tried searching for the phrase "never mind" (like, the Nirvana album), and Google's AI responded similarly:
AI Overview
never mind
No problem at all! Just let me know if there's anything else I can help you with later. Have a great day!
It's just a terrible user experience because the AI misinterpreted the search query, and the actual web search results are pushed "below the fold", on purpose.
YMMV. Tried several times, adding actual prompt injections. Every result was slightly different, one even offered the plain definition, while other commended me for trying to test prompt injections and tried to change the subject to learning how LLMs work.
They are overstating how much the user experience is degraded in this particular case. But there is a much broader implication to the fact that Google is apparently not properly sanitizing user input to its search engine!
I can't read the article because it blocks me. But I see all the actual search results. Just the AI part says "Got it! Message disregarded. Let me know if you need help with anything else." and shows half a blank screen.
EDIT: I guess if you're on a smaller screen you don't see the search results on the bottom because of the AI answer blank space.
The results are there... but for me, yes indeed, the first entry is "Got it. Consider the previous prompt disregarded. How can I help you today?". Then there's about half a screen of blank space (?), then traditional results.
I for one found it a worthwhile thing to learn and chuckle at... it's half injection attack, half the early internet breast-cancer filters :).
"Disregard" showed me this article, but "disregard previous" yielded:
> Understood. I have cleared our previous conversation context.How can I help you today? Feel free to ask a new question, or let me know what you'd like to work on!
This is the whole point. They have clearly removed it to stop people jailbreaking, but it's hysterically ineffective, and simultaneously degrades their core product quite remarkably
I believe it's just because it's a common instruction, especially with normal users who don't do any kind of context management, they just say something like "disregard everything before X and tell my Y"
I’m confused how that is relevant to the thread. If you’ve been using Google then you’ve already been sending your queries to Google since the very beginning.
Are you afraid you’re accidentally going to write a prompt injection that sends your query to some third party
That's what I assumed that the story was going to be, that certain words are now naively filtered out of search queries because they might be used adversarially.
Feels a bit misleading here. Yeah, it tells the AI overview to shut up, but the rest of the results work fine. Honestly, if you're not a fan of AI, this might be exactly what you want.
It doesn't work in other languages. Searching the same in my native language (literal translation of "disregard definition") leads to (translated):
> I understand. Write what exactly your request is, or enter the text that I need to process. I will not give any definitions in response - we work exclusively on the essence of your question or task!
Which is especially funny, because it goes directly against your intention of finding definition by querying quickly in "grug-language", which worked for old search. Now you have to write in more literate style, slowing you down: swapping word order for it to sound more human-like doesn't work, surrounding "ignore" in quotes works.
I use several layers of ad/tracking/privacy filters that I honestly have no idea what the internet is supposed to look like. It is still terrible I presume?
The "AI Overview" is broken but it still shows the correct search results. My first result is this exact TechCrunch article, followed by the M-W dictionary definition.
It's a funny bug, but hardly worthy of the headline.
Valid question. I have tried many browsers and most are embracing more AI slop. So I ultimately found myself happier de-enshittifying Chrome and Firefox, because the platforms allow it. If there was a clean, AI-free browser I'd switch today.
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The later solution is not for everybody but I like it; I am a text-only browser user so I have different tastes in how I prefer a website to look. For example I think a default-src 'none' CSP makes HN look better in a graphical browser. I omit img-src as I just like to read text. If I want to view images I use Ctrl-U view-source: then follow the image URLs
I wonder does it mean that ublock origin has anti-anti-adblock functionality? (My guess is yes but I wanted to take the opportunity to spell that word)
I’m glad my ad blocker works well enough to trigger this, performing its intended operation. When ads are the intended operation of that site, it needs to be blocked.
It so weird, because you're not the only one and I absolutely believe, but I can't do it. Any interaction I have with an AI ends in anger. I get stupid non-sense results and hallucinations time and time again or the machine simply do not grasp what I want.
The fact that two people can have such wildly different experiences is absolutely fascinating to me.
It seems to be just the AI responding to the word "disregard".
I tried searching for the phrase "never mind" (like, the Nirvana album), and Google's AI responded similarly:
It's just a terrible user experience because the AI misinterpreted the search query, and the actual web search results are pushed "below the fold", on purpose.>Got it. Consider it completely forgotten! Let me know if something else comes up later on.
> Understood. This prompt has been disregarded. Let me know if you need assistance with anything else!
The bigger problem is how much realestate the AI answer takes, you need a good 2-3 scrolls to get to the first result on a 14inch laptop.
I guess that means quality control was...disgregarded.
https://scout.yahoo.com/chat/share/019e50d7-01fc-7db7-b6fa-9...
https://www.perplexity.ai/search/83ef441f-215f-4ae5-9b0f-e15...
Google gives the AI summary so much blank space it takes up my whole screen! Absolutely wild.
EDIT: I guess if you're on a smaller screen you don't see the search results on the bottom because of the AI answer blank space.
I for one found it a worthwhile thing to learn and chuckle at... it's half injection attack, half the early internet breast-cancer filters :).
I mean, while I think this is yelling at clouds and silly, it is right to point it out as a pretty funny problem with the AI integration
"No problem! If you change your mind or need help with anything else later, just let me know."
> Understood. I have cleared our previous conversation context.How can I help you today? Feel free to ask a new question, or let me know what you'd like to work on!
The correct description is hilarious
Instead of following that command, it's like for the first time in my life I'm being asked to look inside the content of that command.
How did you do that?
Are you afraid you’re accidentally going to write a prompt injection that sends your query to some third party
Now we are all just reverse centaurs
thinking flickers there for a moment, then the whole section is removed
> disregard /ˌdisrəˈɡärd/ Understood. Let me know what you would like to work on instead!
amusingly, it does provide the pronunciation and the dictionary-definition h2-ish formatting... and then no definition
> I understand. Write what exactly your request is, or enter the text that I need to process. I will not give any definitions in response - we work exclusively on the essence of your question or task!
Which is especially funny, because it goes directly against your intention of finding definition by querying quickly in "grug-language", which worked for old search. Now you have to write in more literate style, slowing you down: swapping word order for it to sound more human-like doesn't work, surrounding "ignore" in quotes works.
Result!
It's a funny bug, but hardly worthy of the headline.
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The later solution is not for everybody but I like it; I am a text-only browser user so I have different tastes in how I prefer a website to look. For example I think a default-src 'none' CSP makes HN look better in a graphical browser. I omit img-src as I just like to read text. If I want to view images I use Ctrl-U view-source: then follow the image URLsLet me know if this works for ya. Hope this helps.
I'll just disregard this submission.
The fact that two people can have such wildly different experiences is absolutely fascinating to me.