ChatGPT has become a go-to for everything, from mental health advice to speeding up work to boost productivity.
But just like anything posted online, what you share with ChatGPT will linger. Its “elephant memory” doesn’t forget easily.
And here’s the unsettling part: Your conversations with ChatGPT aren’t guaranteed to stay private. Some users have discovered other people’s chat histories due to technical glitches, which reveals major security flaws in AI interactions. Think of these AI chats as public spaces - if you wouldn’t say something in a crowded room, you shouldn’t share it with ChatGPT.
These AI chatbots serve millions of users daily, yet serious privacy risks lurk beneath the surface. The recent OpenAI vs. NYT judgement has further directed OpenAI to store data indefinitely, bringing forth a slew of data privacy concerns within the AI community.
But this isn’t new to the tech giant, OpenAI has been facing penalties, lawsuits and controversy about its data storing practices for a while now. Between June 2022 and May 2023, over 100,000 stolen ChatGPT account credentials were found on dark web marketplaces. Even major companies like Samsung took action, banning employee use after sensitive internal code was leaked via the platform. Moreover, countless ChatGPT breaches and incidents have been recorded over a mere span of two years.
So what can you do? Start by knowing what not to share.
Here are seven types of sensitive information you should never reveal to ChatGPT and why keeping them private can shield you from data breaches, identity theft, and financial fraud.
Companies put themselves at risk when employees share private information with AI tools.The risks of Shadow AI have elevated and a worrying 77% of organizations are exploring and using artificial intelligence tools actively. While 58% of these companies have already dealt with AI-related security breaches. This raises a key question: does ChatGPT store your data after you give it access? It does, for a minimum of 30 days.
Sensitive company information entails any data that, if disclosed, could damage an organization. This sensitive data could harm the market position of the firm as well as its reputation and security. Here’s what it encompasses:
A mere 10 percent of firms have established dedicated AI policies aimed at safeguarding their sensitive data.
Best Practices for employees:
Best Practices for security teams/CISOs/leaders:
Your personal data serves as currency in today’s digital world, and AI chatbots have become unexpected collectors of this information. A 2024 EU audit brought to light that 63% of ChatGPT user data contained personally identifiable information (PII), while only 22% of users knew they could opt out of data collection.
Personal identifiable information (PII) covers any details that can identify you directly or combined with other data. Government agencies define PII as “information that can be used to distinguish or trace an individual’s identity, either alone or when combined with other information”.
PII falls into two main categories:
Research shows that 87% of US citizens can be identified just by their gender, ZIP code, and date of birth. Best practices include using sanitization tools or redaction tools that autodetect PII, replace them smartly so your data is never exposed, while rehydrating the responses with your original data - so neither is your data exposed nor do you ever have to compromise on productivity.
Financial information is among your most sensitive data, recent evaluations indicate more than one-third of finance-related prompts to ChatGPT return incorrect or partial information. This underscores the dangers of entrusting financial decisions to AI that lacks institutional-grade encryption.
ChatGPT should never have access to your banking details. You must keep this sensitive financial information private:
Yes, it is crucial to keep any financial identifier private that could enable unauthorized transactions. ChatGPT might seem like a handy tool for financial questions, but it lacks the banking-grade encryption needed to protect your data.
Note that ChatGPT doesn’t have current information about interest rates, market conditions, or financial regulations. Financial experts warn that seeking AI advice on financial matters is “quite dangerous” because of these limitations.
Best Practices:
Password security is the life-blood of digital protection. Users put their credentials at risk through AI chatbots without realizing it.
ChatGPT creates serious security risks if you store passwords in it. Your passwords stay in OpenAI’s database, possibly forever. This puts your credentials on servers you can’t control.
ChatGPT lacks basic security features that protect passwords on other platforms.
OpenAI confirmed that user accounts were compromised by a malicious actor who got unauthorized access through stolen credentials. The platform still needs vital protection measures like two-factor authentication and login monitoring.
OpenAI’s employees and service providers review conversations to improve their systems. This means your passwords could be seen by unknown individuals who check chat logs.
Password exposure through ChatGPT leads to major risks:
ChatGPT should never generate passwords. Its password generation has basic flaws that put security at risk:
Password managers provide better security for your credentials. These tools:
Password managers solve a basic problem: people have about 250 password-protected accounts. No one can create and remember strong, unique passwords for so many accounts without help from technology.
Quality password managers offer secure password sharing, encrypted vault export, and advanced multi-factor authentication. Many support passkeys too, which might replace traditional passwords in the future.
Creators who share their original work with AI tools face unique risks beyond personal data concerns. The risks are real, nearly nine in ten artists fear their creations are being scraped by AI systems for training, often without clear permission or compensation.
Intellectual property (IP) means creations that come from the human mind and have legal protection. Here are the main types:
IP rights let creators control their works and earn money from them. All the same, these protections face new challenges in the AI era, especially when courts keep saying that “human authorship is a bedrock requirement of copyright.”
OpenAI’s terms state they give you “all its rights, title and interest” in what ChatGPT creates. But there’s more to the story.
OpenAI can only give you rights it actually has. The system might create content similar to existing copyrighted works, rights OpenAI never had in the first place.
Your inputs could end up in storage to train future versions of the model. This means parts of your novel, code, or artistic ideas might become part of ChatGPT’s knowledge.
Many users might get similar outputs, which makes ownership claims tricky. OpenAI admits that “many users may receive identical or similar outputs.”
The legal rules around AI-generated content aren’t clear yet. The U.S. Copyright Office says AI-created works without real human input probably can’t get copyright protection. Courts have made it clear that “works created without human authorship are ineligible for copyright protection.”
Just telling AI to create something, no matter how complex your instructions, usually doesn’t count as human authorship. Copyright protection might only apply when humans really shape, arrange, or change what AI creates.
Here’s how to protect your intellectual property when using AI tools:
ChatGPT’s friendly conversational style makes users reveal more than they mean to. People treat AI chatbots as digital confessionals. They share personal stories, relationship details, and private thoughts without thinking over the potential risks. ChatGPT knows how to simulate understanding so well that it creates a false sense of confidentiality.
ChatGPT poses the most important privacy risks when users share too much. Human conversations fade from memory, but everything you type into ChatGPT stays stored on external servers. OpenAI employees, contractors, or hackers during security breaches might access these conversations. A ChatGPT bug in March 2023 let some users see titles of other users’ conversation history. This showed how vulnerable the system could be.
ChatGPT has reliable memory capabilities. OpenAI upgraded ChatGPT’s memory features to include “reference all your past conversations”. The system can recall details from previous chats even without being told to remember them. ChatGPT stores information through manually saved memories and learns from your chat history.
Sharing sensitive information or making harmful requests to ChatGPT raises serious ethical and legal issues. OpenAI keeps improving its safeguards against misuse, but cybercriminals keep trying new ways to get around these protections.
ChatGPT users make harmful requests that usually fit these categories:
Cybercriminals have created special “jailbreak prompts” to bypass ChatGPT’s safety features. These include prompts like DAN (Do Anything Now), Development Mode, and AIM (Always Intelligent and Machiavellian) that trick the AI into creating restricted content.
ChatGPT actively collects and stores your data. OpenAI’s privacy policy states that the company collects two types of personal information:
OpenAI uses this data to train its models, which means your conversations help develop future ChatGPT versions. The company states they don’t use your data for marketing or sell it to third parties without consent. However, their employees and some service providers can review your conversations.
Wald.ai lets you use AI capabilities while keeping your data secure. Many users worry about privacy with regular AI assistants, but Wald.ai’s Context Intelligence platform automatically protects your sensitive information.
The platform sanitizes sensitive data in your prompts. Our contextual redaction process spots and removes personal information, proprietary data, and confidential details instantly. Your sensitive data never reaches ChatGPT or any other AI model.
The platform comes with powerful features to protect your data:
Wald stands out because of its contextual understanding. Traditional pattern-based tools often over-redact or miss sensitive information. Wald analyzes entire conversation threads to spot sensitive content based on context.
You can upload documents like PDFs to ask questions or create summaries. These documents stay encrypted with your keys on Wald’s reliable infrastructure throughout the process.
Wald helps organizations follow regulations like HIPAA, GLBA, CCPA, and GDPR. Custom data retention policies give you control over data storage and processing time.
Wald.ai basically makes using AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Gemini and more, safe to use. Your sensitive information stays protected while you use AI assistants freely - whether it’s financial information, intellectual property, healthcare data, or personal details. The automatic sanitization keeps everything secure.
You need to be careful online. Before you type anything, ask yourself: “Would I feel okay if this showed up in public?” This quick check will help you set good limits with AI.
Enterprises especially need to have security tools and frameworks in place instead of solely relying on ChatGPT Enterprise’ promises, after all, the system keeps your chats stored for a minimum of 30-days.
Data privacy is your right, not just an extra feature. ChatGPT has changed how we use technology, but ease of use shouldn’t risk your security. Either way, protecting your sensitive information must be your top priority in today’s AI world.
Q1. Is it safe to share my personal information with ChatGPT?
No, it’s not safe to share personal information with ChatGPT. The platform stores conversations for a minimum of 30-days. Additionally, there have been instances of data breaches exposing user information. It’s best to avoid sharing any sensitive personal details.
Q2. Can ChatGPT access my financial information if I ask for financial advice? While ChatGPT doesn’t directly access your financial accounts, sharing financial details in your prompts can be risky. The information you provide is stored on external servers and could potentially be exposed. It’s safer to use hypothetical scenarios when seeking financial advice through AI chatbots.
Q3. How does ChatGPT handle intellectual property and creative works?
ChatGPT may store and potentially use creative content shared in conversations to improve its models. This creates risks for creators, as their work could become part of the AI’s knowledge base without explicit consent. It’s advisable to avoid sharing complete unpublished works or sensitive creative content.
Q4. Are my conversations with ChatGPT private?
No, conversations with ChatGPT are not entirely private. The platform stores chat logs, and OpenAI employees or contractors may review conversations for quality control or training purposes. Additionally, there have been instances where users could see titles of other users’ conversation history due to bugs.
Q5. What happens if I accidentally share sensitive information with ChatGPT?
If you accidentally share sensitive information, it’s best to delete the conversation immediately. However, the data may still be stored on OpenAI’s servers. To minimize risks, always be cautious about the information you share and consider using platforms with automatic data sanitization features, like Wald.ai, for added protection.
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