# AI's Unsettling Edge: Super-Admin Access on Major Ticketing Platform Concerns about AI's role in autonomous hacking often conjure images of large-scale, catastrophic cyberattacks. However, a recent discovery by security researcher **Ian Carroll** paints a more immediate, and perhaps more relatable, picture: an AI-assisted bypass of a ticketing website's security, granting full super-administrator access. In April, Carroll utilized **Anthropic**'s advanced AI model, **Claude Opus 4.7**, to uncover a significant vulnerability within **Front Gate Tickets**. This platform, a subsidiary of **Live Nation Entertainment** alongside **Ticketmaster**, manages ticketing for a vast array of major US music festivals, including **Lollapalooza**, **South by Southwest**, and **Austin City Limits**. ## Unfettered Access and Potential Exploits Carroll's research revealed a flaw that, with **Claude**'s assistance, allowed him to gain extensive access to **Front Gate Tickets**' systems. This included the ability to view millions of customer and staff records and to issue tickets of any value for any event, even coveted VIP backstage passes. "It was pretty cool to see a ticket that’s $4,000, and I could just hit a button and issue as many as I wanted," Carroll stated. "I could go to every single event with no limitations or restrictions: I could get the backstage pass or whatever they sell to the super VIPs—even if it’s sold out."  ## Responsible Disclosure and Swift Patching Rather than exploit the vulnerability, Carroll responsibly reported his findings to **Front Gate Tickets**. The company confirmed it has since patched the flaw, thanking Carroll for his collaboration. In a statement, **Front Gate Tickets** asserted: "This was resolved within 24 hours, and we can confirm there is no evidence of exploitation, ticket impact, or compromise of customer information." The company further clarified that the issue was identified by a responsible security researcher using AI-assisted tools to bypass standard firewall security controls and access an internal API used by entry scanners at festival venues, not a consumer-facing system or public login portal. ## AI's Role in Vulnerability Discovery This incident underscores the burgeoning capability of AI in uncovering complex security flaws. Carroll, who is part of **Anthropic**’s Cyber Verification Program, expressed surprise at **Claude**'s effectiveness. He believes the AI could have potentially discovered the exploit end-to-end without human intervention. **Anthropic**'s spokesperson confirmed their Cyber Verification Program's purpose is to empower defenders with advanced security capabilities. They also noted that unauthorized use of **Claude** for hacking would have been detected and blocked. ## Unanswered Questions and Systemic Concerns While **Front Gate Tickets** maintains that safeguards were in place to limit exposure and detect fraudulent activity, Carroll highlighted that the company did not claim to have evidence that the vulnerability *wasn't* previously exploited. Furthermore, **Front Gate Tickets** confirmed Carroll's ability to generate tickets at will after reviewing his draft blog post on the discovery.  ## The Technical Breakdown Carroll's initial investigation into **Front Gate Tickets**' domain, prompted by his observation of their market dominance in festival ticketing, led him to a suspected **SQL injection** vulnerability. A web application firewall (WAF) initially blocked his attempts to exploit it. It was at this point that **Claude Opus 4.7** proved instrumental. Carroll tasked the AI with finding a bypass, and **Claude** swiftly generated a hacking technique. The AI discovered that a "nested SQL query" could evade the WAF's detection, subsequently crafting a script that exposed samples from 500 databases of customer information. This data, Carroll estimates, could have provided access to millions of customer names, emails, and mailing addresses, as well as staff information. With access to staff data, Carroll was able to compromise super-administrator accounts by exploiting a password reset vulnerability. He found the reset code sent to the administrator's email stored in the site's backend, allowing him to set a new password and take control of the account. This incident serves as a stark reminder for IT security professionals of the increasing sophistication of vulnerability discovery, particularly with the aid of advanced AI tools. It emphasizes the critical need for continuous security auditing, robust WAF configurations, and vigilant monitoring of internal APIs and backend systems. As AI becomes more prevalent in both offensive and defensive cybersecurity, understanding its capabilities and limitations will be paramount for safeguarding digital assets.