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Defense Against Prompt Injection Attack by Leveraging Attack Techniques

Authors: Yulin Chen, Haoran Li, Zihao Zheng, Yangqiu Song, Dekai Wu, Bryan Hooi

Published: 2024-11-01

arXiv ID: 2411.00459v6

Added to Library: 2025-11-11 14:20 UTC

Red Teaming

📄 Abstract

With the advancement of technology, large language models (LLMs) have achieved remarkable performance across various natural language processing (NLP) tasks, powering LLM-integrated applications like Microsoft Copilot. However, as LLMs continue to evolve, new vulnerabilities, especially prompt injection attacks arise. These attacks trick LLMs into deviating from the original input instructions and executing the attacker's instructions injected in data content, such as retrieved results. Recent attack methods leverage LLMs' instruction-following abilities and their inabilities to distinguish instructions injected in the data content, and achieve a high attack success rate (ASR). When comparing the attack and defense methods, we interestingly find that they share similar design goals, of inducing the model to ignore unwanted instructions and instead to execute wanted instructions. Therefore, we raise an intuitive question: Could these attack techniques be utilized for defensive purposes? In this paper, we invert the intention of prompt injection methods to develop novel defense methods based on previous training-free attack methods, by repeating the attack process but with the original input instruction rather than the injected instruction. Our comprehensive experiments demonstrate that our defense techniques outperform existing training-free defense approaches, achieving state-of-the-art results.

🔍 Key Points

  • The paper proposes innovative defense techniques against prompt injection attacks by repurposing existing attack strategies, demonstrating that the same principles can be adapted for defense.
  • New defense methods were tested comprehensively against both direct and indirect prompt injection attacks, outperforming traditional training-free methods, and achieving comparable performance to fine-tuning techniques.
  • A significant reduction in the attack success rate (ASR) was reported, approaching zero in specific scenarios, showcasing the effectiveness of these defense mechanisms.
  • The authors performed an extensive evaluation of their methods across various open-source and closed-source LLMs, illustrating their generalizability and robustness against multiple types of attacks.
  • This study establishes a compelling connection between the effectiveness of attack methods and the defenses developed, providing a framework for future research in LLM security.

💡 Why This Paper Matters

This paper is relevant and important as it addresses a critical vulnerability in large language models (LLMs), specifically prompt injection attacks. By creatively using the mechanics of these attacks to formulate robust defenses, the authors provide a novel approach that significantly enhances the security of LLM applications. The findings not only contribute to the academic discourse on AI safety but also hold practical implications for developers and organizations utilizing LLMs.

🎯 Why It's Interesting for AI Security Researchers

This paper would be of significant interest to AI security researchers as it tackles the pressing issue of security vulnerabilities in LLMs, which are increasingly deployed in real-world applications. The innovative defensive strategies proposed offer a fresh perspective on securing AI systems, emphasizing the importance of understanding and leveraging attack methodologies in developing robust defenses. Furthermore, the potential implications for safeguarding user data and maintaining trust in AI technologies are critical areas of concern for researchers focusing on secure AI deployment.

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