AI Governance Engineer
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Reasonably foreseeable misuse

By Updated

Use of an AI system not in accordance with its intended purpose that may result from reasonably foreseeable human behaviour or interaction with other systems, including other AI systems 1. Distinct from an attack; kept in a misuse register that feeds tests, runtime policy and the instructions for use.

Developed in
ch. 14, Reasonably foreseeable misuse
ch. 15, Secondary use and downstream harm
Chapters
ch. 14, Development · ch. 15, Deployment
Contrast with
Intended purpose
Source
1 numbered reference, listed below

Where it is used

4 chapters of the Body of Knowledge use the term. Each link opens the first section that does.

Reasonably foreseeable misuse: mentions per chapter8 mentions of the term across 4 of the 23 chapters of the Body of Knowledge; the chapters the glossary cross-references are drawn solid.Cross-referenced chapterOther chapter13 Risk Management: 4 mentions13 Risk Management414 Development: 2 mentions14 Development215 Deployment: 1 mention15 Deployment118 EU AI Act: 1 mention18 EU AI Act1No mentions in the other 19 chaptersSource: the Body of Knowledgev0.5.0
Reasonably foreseeable misuse: mentions per chapter8 mentions of the term across 4 of the 23 chapters of the Body of Knowledge; the chapters the glossary cross-references are drawn solid.Cross-referenced chapterOther chapter00010203040506070810111213 Risk Management: 4 mentions41314 Development: 2 mentions21415 Deployment: 1 mention115161718 EU AI Act: 1 mention1181920212223Source: the Body of Knowledge v0.5.0
Mentions per chapter How often each chapter names the term, with the chapters the glossary cross-references drawn solid. The longest bar is where to read the term in use; bars spread across many chapters mark a term that runs through the discipline.
Mentions as a table
Mentions of Reasonably foreseeable misuse per chapter
ChapterMentionsCross-referenced
00 Preface0No
01 Definition0No
02 Why Now0No
03 Values & Principles0No
04 The Stack0No
05 Patterns0No
06 The Role0No
07 Maturity Model0No
08 Regulatory Map0No
10 Reading List0No
11 AI Defined0No
12 Governance Program0No
13 Risk Management4No
14 Development2Yes
15 Deployment1Yes
16 Fairness & XAI0No
17 Incidents0No
18 EU AI Act1No
19 Privacy & AI0No
20 Existing Law0No
21 AI Laws Worldwide0No
22 Principles & Standards0No
23 AI Agents0No

Patterns that use this term

One pattern page uses the term.

Reasonably foreseeable misuse: related terms and patternsThe term at the centre; related terms on solid edges, the terms it is contrasted with on dashed edges, and the patterns that use it most in the colour of their layer.RelatedContrastColour: stack layer of the pattern02 InventoryReasonably foreseeable misuseRelated terms (4)AI system · RelatedAI systemDownstream use register · RelatedDownstream use registerFunction creep · RelatedFunction creepInstructions for use · RelatedInstructions for useContrast with (1)Intended purpose · ContrastIntended purposePatterns using it (1)Downstream Use Register, 1 mention · Uses the termDownstream Use Register
Reasonably foreseeable misuse: related terms and patternsThe term at the centre; related terms on solid edges, the terms it is contrasted with on dashed edges, and the patterns that use it most in the colour of their layer.RelatedContrastColour: stack layer of the pattern02 InventoryRelated terms (4)AI system · RelatedAI systemDownstream use register · RelatedDownstream use registerFunction creep · RelatedFunction creepInstructions for use · RelatedInstructions for useContrast with (1)Intended purpose · ContrastIntended purposePatterns using it (1)Downstream Use Register, 1 mention · Uses the termDownstream Use RegisterReasonablyforeseeablemisuse
The term's neighbourhood Terms related to this one on solid edges, terms it is often confused with on dashed edges, and the patterns that use it most in the colour of their layer. Follow a dashed edge to check the distinction before you use either term.
Neighbourhood as a table
Neighbourhood of Reasonably foreseeable misuse
FamilyItemRelation
Related termsAI systemRelated
Related termsDownstream use registerRelated
Related termsFunction creepRelated
Related termsInstructions for useRelated
Contrast withIntended purposeContrast
Patterns using itDownstream Use Register, 1 mentionUses the term
  • Downstream use register

    The record of every consumer of an AI system's outputs (a system, team, partner or training pipeline), each with its approved use, the re-test that cleared…

  • Function creep

    The gradual reuse of personal data or an AI system for purposes nobody approved, usually by configuration rather than a new release.

  • Instructions for use

    The information a provider of a high-risk AI system must give deployers: intended purpose, declared accuracy and robustness, known risks, how to read the…

  • AI system

    For governance, the object the AI definition brings into scope.

Sources

  1. [1] Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 (AI Act), consolidated text as amended by Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 (Digital Omnibus on AI, in force 27 Jul 2026; definitions in Art. 3, incl. 3(1), 3(3) to 3(14), 3(14b), 3(20), 3(22), 3(23), 3(29) to 3(32), 3(49), 3(55) to 3(57), 3(60), 3(61), 3(63), 3(68); Arts. 4, 5, 6 (incl. 6(3) third subparagraph, profiling), 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 17, 22 to 27 (incl. 26(11)), 40, 41, 43, 47, 48, 50, 53 (incl. 53(1)(c)), 55, 57, 60, 72, 73, 86; Annexes I, III, IV). Publications Office of the EU (EUR-Lex). 2026-07-27. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1689/2026-07-27/eng (verified: primary)

Definitions of legal terms paraphrase the cited text, which governs. Dated statements are as of .

Cite this term

García Aibar, J. (2026). Reasonably foreseeable misuse. In AI Governance Engineering: The Thesis & Body of Knowledge (v0.5.0), Glossary. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22956197. https://aigovernanceengineer.com/glossary/reasonably-foreseeable-misuse. CC BY 4.0

BibTeX

@misc{aige2026reasonablyforeseeablemisuse,
  author  = {Jorge García Aibar},
  title   = {{Reasonably foreseeable misuse}},
  note    = {Glossary, AI Governance Engineering: The Thesis \& Body of Knowledge, version 0.5.0},
  year    = {2026},
  doi     = {10.5281/zenodo.22956197},
  url     = {https://aigovernanceengineer.com/glossary/reasonably-foreseeable-misuse}
}