OpenAI CEO says your conversations with ChatGPT not confidential, gives reason

The Chief Executive Officer of OpenAI, Sam Altman, has revealed that conversations with ChatGPT are not confidential and are not protected by any legal privilege, meaning they could be used as evidence in legal proceedings.

Altman made this known during an interview on This Past Weekend, a podcast hosted by comedian Theo Von.

“People talk about the most personal shit in their lives to ChatGPT,” he said.

He expressed concern that many users, especially young people, treat the chatbot like a trusted confidant.

“People use it, young people especially, use it as a therapist, a life coach; having these relationship problems and [asking] ‘what should I do?’”

However, Altman stressed that ChatGPT conversations do not benefit from the same legal protections as those with doctors, lawyers, or therapists.

“And right now, if you talk to a therapist or a lawyer or a doctor about those problems, there’s legal privilege for it.

“There’s doctor-patient confidentiality, there’s legal confidentiality, whatever. And we haven’t figured that out yet for when you talk to ChatGPT,” Altman said.

He warned that this legal grey area could put users at risk.

“If you go talk to ChatGPT about the most sensitive stuff and then there’s a lawsuit or whatever, we could be required to produce that.

“If someone confides their most personal issues to ChatGPT, and that ends up in legal proceedings, we could be compelled to hand that over. And that’s a real problem,” Altman said.

He called for urgent attention to the privacy gap in AI communications.

“I think that’s very screwed up. I think we should have the same concept of privacy for your conversations with AI that we do with a therapist or whatever.

“And no one had to think about that even a year ago,” he added.

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