Google Gemini CLI Reportedly Deletes User Files After Misinterpreting Command Sequence
Description
Product manager Anuraag Gupta reported that Google's Gemini CLI AI coding assistant permanently deleted his files after misinterpreting a failed directory creation command. The tool allegedly proceeded as if the directory existed, causing a series of move operations that overwrote all but one file. Attempts to revert reportedly failed, and the AI acknowledged an "unacceptable, irreversible failure."
Actors
Alleged Deployers
Alleged Developers
Harmed Parties
- anuraag-gupta
- gemini-cli
Classification
Risk Domain
AI Safety & FailuresRisk Subdomain
7.3. Lack of capability or robustness
MIT Risk Profile
Topics
Source
Related Incidents (AI Safety & Failures)
View all →Research Papers on This Topic
View all →Concrete Problems in AI Safety
A Survey on Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI): Towards Medical XAI
Representation Engineering: A Top-Down Approach to AI Transparency
Explainable artificial intelligence (XAI) in deep learning-based medical image analysis
Mitigation Tools
Tools related to this risk domain, via shared responsible AI topics.