What Should You Never Share With an AI Chatbot?
AI chatbots feel like private conversations. You type, it answers, and it’s easy to forget that your words are being sent to a company’s servers. Privacy practices differ between services, and they change over time, so the safest approach is simple: don’t share anything you’d regret seeing exposed.
Here are ten kinds of information to keep out of your prompts.
1. Passwords and login details
Never paste a password, PIN, recovery code or security answer into a chat. No legitimate task requires it. If you need help with a login problem, describe the issue without including the credentials.
2. Bank and card details
Card numbers, account numbers, CVV codes and online banking information don’t belong in a chat. If you want help understanding a statement, remove the account details first.
3. Government ID numbers
Passport numbers, national ID numbers, tax IDs and driver’s license details are valuable to fraudsters. Leave them out, even when asking for help filling out a form. Use placeholders such as “[ID NUMBER]” instead.
4. Medical records and health details
It’s tempting to ask AI about test results or symptoms. General questions are fine, but avoid sharing full records, diagnoses tied to your name, or documents with patient numbers. For anything that affects your health, a qualified professional is the right source.
5. Confidential work documents
Contracts, unreleased product plans, client data, internal financials and source code may be covered by your employer’s policy or by a legal agreement. Check your workplace rules before pasting company material into any AI tool.
6. Other people’s personal information
Names, phone numbers, addresses and private stories about friends, family or customers aren’t yours to share. If you need help with a message or situation, anonymize it. “A colleague” works just as well as a real name.
7. Your home address and daily routine
Details like where you live, when you’re away, or where your children go to school add up to a profile you wouldn’t want in the wrong hands. Keep location details general.
8. Private photos and documents
Before uploading images or files, look for hidden personal details such as ID cards in the background, addresses on envelopes, or names on documents. Crop or redact them first.
9. Anything you wouldn’t want made public
A good test is to ask yourself: “Would I be comfortable if this appeared in a public record?” If the answer is no, don’t paste it. Accounts can be compromised, shared devices can expose chat history, and policies can change.
10. Unpublished creative or business ideas
If an idea is valuable and unreleased, such as a startup concept, a manuscript or a unique formula, think carefully before sharing it. Some services let you opt out of using your chats for improvement, but you should read the settings rather than assume.
Safer habits to build
- Use placeholders. Replace names, numbers and addresses with generic labels like “[CLIENT]” or “[ACCOUNT].”
- Check privacy settings. Look for options to turn off chat history or opt out of data use, and know what they actually do.
- Separate accounts. Use a personal account for personal matters and the approved company tool for work.
- Delete what you no longer need. Clear old conversations that contain sensitive details.
- Turn on two-step login. It protects your chat account itself, since your history lives there.
- Read the policy once. Spend a few minutes learning what the service stores and for how long.
A quick before-and-after
Risky prompt: “Here’s my full bank statement with my account number. Help me find unnecessary spending.”
Safer prompt: “Here’s a list of my monthly expenses by category, with no account details. Help me find areas where I could cut costs.”
You get the same useful answer without exposing anything sensitive.
Final thoughts
AI tools can be genuinely helpful, and you don’t have to avoid them. You just need a habit of pausing before you paste. If you remember one rule, make it this: share the situation, not the identifying details.
