Artificial intelligence has really taken off in recent years, and we’re using it a lot these days. AI chatbots, such as ChatGPT, are particularly popular. You can ask them anything you want, and you can even have entire conversations with such a chatbot. That’s super fun, of course, but is it also wise? It’s not that talking to an AI bot is necessarily a problem, but the question is whether such a conversation is actually private—and will remain so. So be careful about what you share!
Is a conversation with an AI bot private?
Over the past year, there have been a number of incidents involving chatbots that turned out to be unreliable. Last year, for example, a Samsung employee shared trade secrets with ChatGPT, which were subsequently leaked. In addition, recent research showed that ChatGPT sometimes leaked login credentials for other services when users shared them. Obviously, these aren’t the kinds of things you want publicly available on the internet. But how is it possible that the information you give to such an AI bot can be leaked? An AI bot like ChatGPT currently draws all its information from the internet, but also from previous conversations it has had. So whatever you say to such an AI bot, it can then use as input for other conversations. The information you give it is therefore never really private.
How can you safely interact with an AI bot?
Of course, this doesn’t mean you can’t have a conversation with an AI bot at all. You just need to be careful about what you do and don’t share with it. An AI bot like ChatGPT is perfect for getting general information on a specific topic, so don’t be afraid to use it. Just make sure you don’t share any details with an AI bot—and definitely not login credentials or passwords. Want to share a secret with someone? It’s best to share it with a chatbot, as long as you leave out names and specific details. Do you have a huge crush on a teacher? You can certainly say that, but make sure not to mention the teacher’s name!