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AI and your privacy: what happens to your chats
In short: Most AI chatbots store your conversations, at least for a while, and some may use them to improve their models unless you switch that off. Check the privacy settings, use temporary or private chat modes for sensitive questions, and keep personal, financial and other people's information out of your chats.
Your words leave your device
When you type a question into most AI chatbots, it is sent to the company's computers, where the AI model runs. The answer is created there and sent back. That means your conversation passes through, and is usually stored on, someone else's systems. This is normal for online services, much like email, but it is worth knowing what happens next.
What companies may do with your chats
- Store them so you can see your chat history later.
- Review some of them for safety, abuse prevention or quality checks, sometimes by people.
- Use them to improve the AI, depending on the service, your account type and your settings.
- Keep them for a set time, even after you delete them, for legal or safety reasons.
The details differ between services and change over time, so check the privacy page and settings of the tool you actually use. Work and school accounts often have stricter rules than free personal accounts.
Settings worth checking today
- Open the chatbot's Settings and look for a section called Privacy or Data controls.
- Decide whether to allow your chats to be used for training. Switch it off if you prefer.
- Look for a temporary, incognito or private chat option for sensitive questions.
- Check how to delete your history and how long deleted chats are kept.
- Review any memory feature that remembers facts about you between chats, and remove anything you do not want kept.
Never share these
- Passwords, PINs and one-time codes.
- Bank card and account numbers.
- Passport, ID or national insurance numbers.
- Detailed medical records or other people's private information.
- Confidential work documents, unless your employer has approved that tool for them.
If you want help with a letter or document, replace names, numbers and addresses with placeholders such as "[NAME]" first. The AI can still help with the wording.
AI built into other apps
AI features now appear inside email, office software, phones and browsers. Some run directly on your device and never send your data away; others send it to the cloud. Settings menus increasingly explain which is which. When an assistant asks for access to your emails, files or location, think about whether you need that feature before you say yes. Our article AI assistants that act for you covers the newer assistants that can take actions.
Tip: A good rule: if you would not paste it into an email to a stranger, do not paste it into a chatbot.
Beware of fake AI apps
Criminals publish lookalike AI apps and browser extensions that steal what you type or install harmful software. Download AI apps only from official stores or the company's own website, and check the developer name. See What is an app? for the checks to make.
Key takeaways
- Chatbot conversations are sent to and usually stored on the company's systems.
- Some services use chats to improve their AI unless you switch it off.
- Check privacy settings, memory features and private chat modes.
- Never share passwords, card numbers, ID numbers or other people's private details.
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