The use of AI technologies is only becoming more and more widespread, whether it’s in our professional or our personal lives. On the surface, sharing info with an AI may feel like a private conversation, and we may be tempted to tell it more than we should. In reality, there are serious privacy risks tied to AI that can’t be ignored.
Keep reading to find out whether you can trust AI with your data. Hint: you can’t.
What are the Privacy Risks of AI?
As we jump into the various privacy issues that come from AI use, we’re going to break them into a few different categories for easier reference.
1. AI companies harvesting your data
It’s no secret: AI companies are in the data business. They not only use your inputted data to process your requests, they specifically collect and use your data as a way to advance their language models. This can lead to a variety of problems from a privacy perspective.
- Reviewing data
Most popular AI services, like ChatGPT and Google Gemini, use human review at some level, meaning that there’s a chance the input you give the AI is being read (or seen, listened to, etc.) by an unknown reviewer. And you can’t be sure exactly when it’s happening or what messages are being reviewed. Maybe it’s your medical info, your financial info, or one of your spicy political takes.
- Storing data
From a short-term perspective, your inputs may be temporarily stored in the cloud while they’re being processed. Long-term storage may also occur, depending on the service’s privacy policy or undisclosed practices. When we realize everything we share with the AI may be saved in a database somewhere, we start to get a little more selective with what we do share.
- Using data
AI models need data. That’s how they’re developed. In fact, the reason so many AI services are free and open to the public is because the advancement of the language learning model (LLM) is fueled by your data. And of course, there’s no guarantee that the use of your data stops there – you just have to take the company’s word for it.
2. Third Parties Accessing Your Data
Plus, even if you do trust the AI service or company you’re using with your data, that’s not the only thing you have to worry about. Because it’s also possible for third parties to gain access to your info.
- Data breaches
Data breaches and leaks are always a problem when it comes to companies and services that store user data, whether it’s your credit card company or your email provider. But with AI, the sheer amount of user data shared makes it a potentially even more dangerous issue.
- Hacking your account
Then there’s the problem of more straightforward hacking attempts, which could involve brute forcing your password, phishing, or more. By getting access to your AI account, a hacker could be able to see much of the info you inputted in the past, especially if you have your chats saved.
- Breaking the AI
One of the more unique issues for AI is the potential to use the model to hack itself through prompting or other methods. Hackers may utilized prompt injection or manipulation, tricking the AI into revealing information it shouldn't share. In theory, this shouldn’t be possible, but in practice, there can be vulnerabilities or loopholes just waiting to be exploited.
3. Private data being connected to your real identity
Online tracking and profiling is already a serious issue when it comes to online privacy. And AI only makes the threat of profiling even worse, due to the sheer amount of info that it’s given access to, whether it’s from your personal or professional life. Plus, there's illusion of privacy that many people have when they’re sharing with an AI.
Can You Trust AI with Your Data?
In short, no, you can not – and should not – trust AI with your data. From how your data is collected and used to potential breaches and hacks, AI poses a serious threat to your privacy. That’s why we should take steps to minimize and protect the data we share.
FAQ
Q: Can AI companies see what I type?
A: In many cases, yes. Some services use human reviewers to evaluate prompts and responses. Read each provider’s privacy policy carefully.
Q: Does AI store my data permanently?
A: It depends on the provider. Some store inputs temporarily for processing; others may store them long-term for training and improvement.
Q: Can AI be hacked to expose my data?
A: Yes. Like any online service, AI tools can be targeted by hackers or manipulated to leak sensitive data through flawed responses.
Q: What’s the safest way to use AI?
A: Don’t share anything sensitive or personal. Assume any input could be stored, seen, or eventually disclosed.