Ever use an AI chatbot? If so, it’s collecting your data. In most cases, it’s used to personalize future responses, but some companies use the information you feed it to train their AI. Others even sell that data to advertisers. On ChatGPT, OpenAI promises to anonymize much of the data it collects, but you still may want to limit what it scoops up. ChatGPT lets you choose whether or not to share private details, limit the type of information that’s collected, and take other steps to protect your identity. Here are a few things I’ve done to protect my privacy on ChatGPT, and how you can too.
1. Use ChatGPT Without an Account
If you already use ChatGPT, you may have created an account to sign in. I have a paid ChatGPT Plus subscription, but an account opens the door to the collection of certain data. Instead, just use it without an account. Even though I have an existing account, I’ll sometimes use ChatGPT without signing in if I need to ask a basic question but don’t want the conversation to be tracked.
Without an account, you can still submit the usual types of requests, run web searches, and even attach images for analysis. The main drawback is that ChatGPT serves up a basic version of the AI without any of the more advanced features. OpenAI may also restrict the topics you’re able to discuss in order to get you to use an account. Still, if you only need the basics and don’t want to expose your conversations or data, this should work fine for many users.
(Credit: PCMag / OpenAI)
2. Don’t Sign in With Google, Apple, or Microsoft
If you do plan to create an account, OpenAI offers a few options. At the ChatGPT screen, click the Sign up for free button at the upper right, where you can use your Google, Apple, or Microsoft accounts or sign up with your own email address and password.
My advice is to avoid using your Google or Microsoft account, since certain information will be shared with OpenAI. Signing in with Apple is a better choice, but only if you use the Hide My Email option, which keeps your Apple account anonymous to better protect your data. The only limitation here is that you’d have to set this up on an iPhone or iPad to take advantage of the Hide My Email setting.
My preference is to sign up using my own email address, and then create a strong and secure password. By taking this route, I’m not associating my OpenAI account with an existing online account. I can also easily change the password without affecting other accounts.
(Credit: PCMag / OpenAI)
3. Use a Temporary Chat
When you sign in with an account, ChatGPT will keep a history of your conversations, may use your chats to train itself, and can remember any personal details you share. Don’t want it doing any of those things for a specific conversation? Just make it a temporary chat.
At the ChatGPT window, click the circular Turn on Temporary Chat icon in the upper right. The prompt field will turn black while a notice pops up telling you how it works. Though you still may not want to share anything too sensitive, you can feel freer to discuss more personal topics in these chats, since the chatbot won’t be committing any of it to memory.
(Credit: PCMag / OpenAI)
4. Turn Off Model Training
OpenAI trains its ChatGPT model based on your conversations. Though the data isn’t supposed to be associated with your account, you may still want to disable this option to prevent any personal information from being shared. Click your account name at the bottom of the left pane and select Settings > Data controls. If Improve the model for everyone is on, switch it off.
(Credit: PCMag / OpenAI)
5. Turn Off Memory
ChatGPT can remember information about you based on what you reveal in your conversations. These can be details like your profession, interests, the name of your spouse, or the names of your pets. With this type of memory, the AI can reference what it knows about you to better personalize your conversations. You can even explicitly tell ChatGPT something that you want it to remember. For example, you can inform it that you’re a vegetarian to influence any recipes you might ask the AI to create in the future.
If you don’t want the AI to remember personal details, you can turn off the Memory feature. Click your account name at the bottom of the left pane and select Settings > Personalization. Scroll down to the Memory section and turn off Reference saved memories. Doing so automatically turns off Reference chat history, as well. I personally keep memory enabled for my main ChatGPT account, but I have it turned off for a test account.
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(Credit: PCMag / OpenAI)
If ChatGPT has already been storing certain details about you, these can be deleted. First, click the Manage button. To remove a specific memory, click the ellipsis icon next to it and select Delete. At the confirmation window, click Delete again. To remove all the memories, click the ellipsis icon at the top of the page and select Delete all memories >Delete all.
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(Credit: PCMag / OpenAI)
6. Remove Personal Information
At the Personalization screen, you can add a nickname, occupation, and more details about yourself. If you’ve already done so and want to erase that information, just delete it from the text fields. When done, click Save to apply the changes.
(Credit: PCMag / OpenAI)
7. Erase Browser Data
With a paid subscription, ChatGPT offers you AI agents that can automatically carry out specific tasks for you across the web. For example, you can tell the agent to find a certain product at an online retailer, sign in to your account there, and add the item to your shopping cart. By default, ChatGPT will store whatever cookies are needed to perform the task, should it need to run it again. But I’ve used AI agents a few times and don’t want my cookies and browser data to be retained this way.
To prevent cookie storage, click your account name at the bottom of the left pane and select Settings > Data controls > Remote browser data. To disable the process, turn off Remember site data between sessions. Select Delete all to delete any existing cookies being stored. At the confirmation window, click Delete.
(Credit: PCMag / OpenAI)
8. Erase Your Conversations
By default, ChatGPT keeps a history of all your conversations so you can refer to past ones and even pick up where you left off. However, at some point you may want to remove those past chats so that the AI can no longer reference them. To do this individually, click the ellipsis icon for the chat you wish to remove and select Delete. At the confirmation window, click Delete again.
(Credit: PCMag / OpenAI)
To remove all past conversations, click your account name at the bottom of the left pane and select Settings > Data controls. Click the Delete all button next to Delete all chats, then click Confirm deletion to confirm your action.
(Credit: PCMag / OpenAI)
About Our Expert
Lance Whitney
Contributor
Experience
I’ve been working for PCMag since early 2016 writing tutorials, how-to pieces, and other articles on consumer technology. Beyond PCMag, I’ve written news stories and tutorials for a variety of other websites and publications, including , ZDNet, TechRepublic, Macworld, PC World, Time, US News & World Report, and AARP Magazine. I spent seven years writing breaking news for as one of the site’s East Coast reporters. I’ve also written two books for Wiley & Sons—Windows 8: Five Minutes at a Time and Teach Yourself Visually LinkedIn.
I’ve used Windows, Office, and other Microsoft products for years so I’m well versed in that world. I also know the Mac quite well. I’m always working with iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, and Android on my various mobile devices. And these days, I write a lot about AI, so that’s become another key area for me.
My wife always jokes about all the tech products we have around the house, but I manage to put them to good use for my articles. I like Lenovo computers, so I own a couple of Lenovo desktops and several laptops. I have three MacBooks and a Mac mini. For my mobile life and work, I use an iPhone 16 Pro, iPad Pro, and iPad mini as well as an Apple Watch. But since I write about Android, I own several Android phones and tablets. Like any tech person, I have a cabinet full of cables, wires, and assorted mysterious gadgets. And when it’s time to take a break from writing, I have an old Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii, both of which I use for exercise and fitness games.
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