Is ChatGPT a Security Risk?
Generative AI tools, like ChatGPT, are becoming increasingly popular across various industries, including customer service, healthcare, and education. However, concerns about their potential cybersecurity risks persist. ChatGPT, which is a language model powered by OpenAI, has advanced capabilities in generating human-like responses to user inquiries and has reached 100 million users just two months after launching. But is ChatGPT a security risk?
One of the potential cybersecurity risks of using ChatGPT is that confidential data entered into the AI tool becomes part of the public domain. The AI tool retains all the data users enter on OpenAI servers to train its machine learning (ML) model. As a result, entering undisclosed company data into ChatGPT, like customer information or confidential internal data, exposes companies to confidentiality risks. For instance, Samsung employees unknowingly exposed sensitive proprietary data, including source code and meeting notes, to competitors and third parties by entering the data into ChatGPT.
Another concern is that cyber criminals can use ChatGPT to write malicious code or develop Business Email Compromise (BEC) or spear phishing attacks, which can put organizations' IT infrastructure at risk. Cyber attackers can successfully infiltrate an organization's IT infrastructure with emails that appear genuine to unsuspecting victims using the AI tool’s public availability. Therefore whether using ChatGPT or any other Generative AI tool, it is essential to exercise caution and take necessary precautions to protect sensitive information.
Best Practices for Using ChatGPT
Despite the cybersecurity risks associated with ChatGPT, it can be a helpful tool in various industry-use applications in today’s digital landscape. Below are some best practices for using ChatGPT securely:
- Ensure employees who use ChatGPT understand the risks associated with the AI tool.
- Minimize risks by limiting data entry into the AI tool.
- Implement security measures to protect your company against cyberattacks from bad actors who use ChatGPT to sharpen their attacks.
- Consider implementing an email threat protection platform like Armorblox that uses large language models, AI, deep learning, and ML algorithms to protect against sophisticated and targeted email attacks and mitigate data loss across your company.
Using ChatGPT securely comes down to exercising caution about the data employees enter into the Generative AI tool. Besides confidentiality risks, data privacy and security are at risk if an employee knowingly or unknowingly enters sensitive data into ChatGPT.
ChatGPT, like other large language models, holds tremendous potential across various industry-use applications in today’s digital landscape. However, due to the increased risks associated with such advanced technology, it is essential to know how to use it securely. By following best practices for using ChatGPT, businesses can protect their sensitive data and minimize cybersecurity risks.
