Definition
Plain language
A leak that comes not from what something says but from incidental traces like timing, length, or style.
As stated in the literature
An information channel outside the intended output surface — here response length, punctuation counts, or stylometric features — that carries recoverable bits about protected context.
Also called: side channels, covert channel
Why it matters: Defenses that only police the literal words in a reply miss these leaks entirely, so a secret can escape through channels nobody thought to guard.
For example, a model that consistently writes slightly shorter replies whenever its hidden instructions contain a certain kind of value is giving away information through length alone.
Heard on the show
“And if even a fraction of these conventions can move a covert channel past a surface monitor — the legibility bet, the read-their-thoughts strategy, starts to look fragile.”Episode 103 — AI Agents Tried to Invent a Post-Human Language, And Reinvented Cherokee