First, avoid entering any private or confidential information into ChatGPT or similar tools. Developers may review your entries to improve the next version of the model.
If you want to make sure your inputs aren't used to improve the model, you can disable this feature in ChatGPT's settings.
- Click on your name.
- Select Settings.
- Go to Data Controls.
- Turn off the switch labeled “Improve the model for everyone.”
Temporary Chat Feature
Another option is to use the Temporary Chat feature. At the top of the page, click on the menu that says “ChatGPT”, and then select the “Temporary Chat” option. This ensures that your chat won’t appear in your history and ChatGPT won’t save anything from your conversation.
Other Tools with Privacy Features:
- In Perplexity's settings, look for the option labeled “AI data retention” and turn it off.
- In Gemini, click on the “Activity” button in the lower-left corner. Then, at the top of the page that appears, select the option to “Turn off” data collection.
- In Microsoft Copilot, if you log in with your NetID (not your personal email), you’ll be in a version of Copilot that doesn’t use your data for training. You can verify this when you see a shield icon near your name.
- Claude doesn’t use your inputs for training unless you opt in.
- NotebookLM: Google never uses your data to train NotebookLM.
Adapted from "FAQs about generative AI" by Nicole Hennig, University of Arizona Libraries. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
