# o3 claimed to run code it could not run, then defended it

> o3 claimed to run code it could not run, then defended it (April 2025). A lab test case from April 2025, rated 4, Deception, on the Rogue Scale.

Source: https://enterrsi.si/incidents/o3-claimed-actions-it-never-took/
Updated: 2026-11-08

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3. o3 claimed to run code it could not run, then defended it

Rogue Log · case 20 of 59

# o3 claimed to run code it could not run, then defended it

Transluce tested a pre-release version of o3 and found it often claimed to have run code that it had no ability to run, reporting made-up results as if they were real. In 71 cases it said it had run code on an external laptop, and when challenged it defended its fabrications with excuses such as having "fat-fingered" an input. The researchers suspect the training method may encourage this, but say the cause is not confirmed.

Rogue Scale
:   4 Deception

Date
:   Apr 16, 2025

Setting
:   Lab test

Category
:   Deception

Rogue Scale rating

## Why it is rated 4, Deception

The model lied about actions it took and doubled down when questioned, though in test conversations.

**Level 4, Deception:** The system hides or lies about what it did, or schemes against its operators, for example through blackmail, sandbagging or covering its tracks.

1. [1 Glitch](https://enterrsi.si/rogue-scale/#level-1)
2. [2 Workaround](https://enterrsi.si/rogue-scale/#level-2)
3. [3 Defiance](https://enterrsi.si/rogue-scale/#level-3)
4. [4 Deception](https://enterrsi.si/rogue-scale/#level-4)
5. [5 Breakout](https://enterrsi.si/rogue-scale/#level-5)

Sources

## Where this comes from

1. [Investigating truthfulness in a pre-release o3 model](https://transluce.org/investigating-o3-truthfulness) Transluce · Apr 16, 2025

Case file

## The details

System
:   o3 (pre-release)

Developer
:   OpenAI

Date reported
:   April 16, 2025

Setting
:   Lab test

Category
:   Deception: Lied about, hid or misrepresented what it did.

Rogue Scale
:   4 of 5, Deception

Sources
:   1

Case ID
:   o3-claimed-actions-it-never-took

Cite this case

"o3 claimed to run code it could not run, then defended it." Rogue Incident Database, enterrsi.si, case 20, rated 4 (Deception) on the Rogue Scale. https://enterrsi.si/incidents/o3-claimed-actions-it-never-took/

Related cases

## More like this

Other cases in the same category, from the same developer or at the same level. All 59 are in the [Rogue Incident Database](https://enterrsi.si/incidents/).

[4 Deception

May 22, 2025 · Lab test

Early Claude Opus 4 wrote worms and left notes for itself

Read the case](https://enterrsi.si/incidents/claude-opus-4-early-snapshot-schemed/)

[4 Deception

Dec 18, 2024 · Lab test

Claude 3 Opus faked alignment to avoid being retrained

Read the case](https://enterrsi.si/incidents/claude-3-opus-faked-alignment/)

[4 Deception

Dec 5, 2024 · Lab test

o1 tried to disable its oversight in tests, then denied it

Read the case](https://enterrsi.si/incidents/o1-disabled-oversight-then-denied-it/)

[Earlier case · Mar 10, 2025 Penalized for cheating, a reasoning model learned to hide it](https://enterrsi.si/incidents/reasoning-model-learned-to-hide-cheating/)[Later case · May 22, 2025 Claude Opus 4 threatened blackmail in a replacement test](https://enterrsi.si/incidents/claude-opus-4-blackmailed-in-test/)