OpenAI Introduces New Privacy Control for ChatGPT
OpenAI has announced a new privacy control feature for its AI program, ChatGPT. This feature would address privacy concerns that the AI program is tapping conversations to improve its responses. With the new feature, users can turn off chat history for ChatGPT and prevent OpenAI from using their queries to augment the program. By disabling the chat history, conversations that users initiate will not be used to improve the AI models, and they will not appear in the chat history sidebar.
The new privacy control is now available to users through the settings tab found in the three-dot menu next to the user's account. Users can toggle off the "chat history & training storage" option to disable the chat history. Previously, users had to go to a Google doc form to opt out of the data collection.
It is important to note that OpenAI will retain conversations for 30 days and review them only when needed to monitor for abuse before permanently deleting them. This step is necessary to ensure users' safety and prevent any breach of privacy.
OpenAI has introduced this privacy control feature a month after a bug caused ChatGPT to briefly leak conversation histories from random users. It has also been reported that people are worried about submitting proprietary data to ChatGPT, which the program can then use to train itself. A fiction writer learned this the hard way when she encouraged users on TikTok to tap ChatGPT and get feedback on their writing. She later backtracked and warned that the program could promote plagiarism by regurgitating content from other writers.
For users looking for stronger privacy options, OpenAI is currently working on a new ChatGPT Business subscription designed for users and businesses sensitive to the program collecting their data. This new business version will follow the API's data usage policies, which means end-users' data will not be used to train the models by default. The company plans to make ChatGPT Business available in the coming months and has not disclosed the pricing yet.
In addition, ChatGPT has also added a new feature, the ability to export all conversation history data. Users can pack all past conversations with the program into a file and have it sent to their email address.
