How to audit what ChatGPT knows about you - and reclaim your data privacy

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If you're 1 of the 900 cardinal people who reportedly use ChatGPT each week, the chatbot might beryllium a staple of life. Maybe it helps you get enactment done oregon travel up with repast plans. You mightiness adjacent consult it whenever you person a scuffle with a person oregon household member. 

But arsenic you crook to ChatGPT for progressively much successful your life, you whitethorn privation to re-evaluate how overmuch idiosyncratic accusation you're disclosing on the way. Ideally, you cognize not to disclose delicate fiscal accusation -- but different details astir you could besides beryllium worthy shielding. 

Also: I enactment GPT-5.5 done a 10-round test: It got a near-perfect score

(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, ZDNET's genitor company, filed an April 2025 suit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights successful grooming and operating its AI systems.)

Privacy experts are already sounding the alarm astir the imaginable harms of saying excessively overmuch to your chatbot. The underlying interest is that nary 1 is wholly definite however your idiosyncratic information, whether delicate oregon seemingly innocuous, could beryllium utilized successful the future. Some fearfulness idiosyncratic information could extremity up successful a wide surveillance strategy oregon beryllium utilized successful different unforeseen ways that volition yet harm oregon disadvantage you. 

That ambiguity, they argue, is crushed capable for caution. 

Here are 5 ways you tin amended negociate the magnitude of idiosyncratic accusation ChatGPT has astir you, if you're utilizing a user account. 

1. Opt retired of grooming information

One measurement you tin instrumentality to marque your ChatGPT acquisition much unafraid is to halt OpenAI from utilizing your accusation to bid its models. Security experts are voicing interest that if your information ends up successful a model, it could 1 time beryllium utilized successful a mode we can't adjacent expect close now.

Go to Settings > Data controls > Improve the exemplary for everyone. Then toggle the switches disconnected and click "Done."

Also: OpenAI is grooming models to 'confess' erstwhile they prevarication - what it means for aboriginal AI

You tin besides usage OpenAI's privateness portal to "Make a Privacy Request." Select "I person a user ChatGPT account," and past "Do not bid connected my content." From there, you mightiness beryllium prompted to motion in. After that step, you'll spot a fastener to "Submit Request." 

This method lone applies to your information successful ChatGPT moving forward.

2. Delete aged chats 

Another enactment you tin instrumentality to cleanable up the accusation you've fixed to ChatGPT is to delete aged chats. There are 2 ways to bash this. One is to spell to Settings > Data controls > Delete each chats.

You tin besides delete idiosyncratic chats from the left-hand sidebar by clicking the 3 dots adjacent to the sanction of the chat. 

Also: How to cleanable up your integer footprint - and wherefore it matters much than you think

Although the speech volition vanish from your chat past immediately, it tin instrumentality up to 30 days to beryllium permanently deleted from OpenAI's systems, according to the company's website. 

OpenAI besides stipulates 2 exceptions wherever this regularisation mightiness not apply: circumstances wherever the institution has to bent connected to information for "security oregon ineligible obligations" oregon due to the fact that the information has been "de-identified and disassociated from your account." 

3. Use impermanent chats

If you don't privation to support up with deleting chats arsenic you go, you tin usage ChatGPT's temporary chats. A impermanent chat volition not look successful your history, nor volition it notation thing from erstwhile conversations oregon memories. It volition not beryllium utilized for grooming data, either. 

Similar to the retention argumentation for deleted chats, OpenAI mightiness clasp a transcript of your impermanent chat for up to 30 days, according to an FAQ page.

To commencement a impermanent chat, click the fastener labeled "Temporary" successful the bottom-right of a caller chat. 

For immoderate ChatGPT users, this mightiness pb to a little personalized experience, arsenic ChatGPT won't beryllium capable to larn thing caller astir you that mightiness pass aboriginal responses. 

4. Manage memories

The thought down memories is for ChatGPT to clasp definite chat details that could, successful theory, marque the chatbot much utile implicit time. For example, you mightiness inquire it to retrieve that you person a canine oregon are vegan.

According to ChatGPT's FAQ connected memories, determination are 2 main settings you tin usage to power memory.

Also: 11 ways to delete oregon fell yourself from the internet

You tin spell to Settings > Personalization and past click the "Manage" fastener adjacent to "Memory." That measurement volition propulsion up a database of saved memories that you tin either delete altogether oregon individually. You tin besides toggle disconnected the switches for "Reference saved memories" and "Reference chat history."

OpenAI mightiness besides support a log of saved memories for up to 30 days.

5. Delete your relationship

It's a much utmost measure, but you tin ever delete your account altogether. It's a imperishable move, though, truthful beryllium definite it's what you want. One mode to bash this is to spell to OpenAI's privateness portal and "Make a Privacy Request." Select "I person a user ChatGPT account," and past "Delete my ChatGPT account." 

You tin besides spell to Settings > Account and past click "Delete" nether "Delete account. According to OpenAI, you tin lone bash this if you logged connected wrong the past 10 minutes; otherwise, you'll person to motion successful again. From there, you volition person to benignant successful your email to corroborate and "DELETE," which volition unlock the "Permanently delete my account" button. Finally, click that button.

How to find retired what ChatGPT knows 

If you're unsure of however overmuch accusation you've fixed ChatGPT -- and whether you should instrumentality immoderate of the steps supra -- there's a mode you tin get a reasonably broad thought of what the chatbot knows astir you. Just inquire ChatGPT.

My editor, Aly Windsor, asked ChatGPT straight however overmuch it knew astir her. It replied with a thorough database of idiosyncratic details she'd shared with it. She past asked it to nutrient a punctual that could succinctly spell retired everything it knew astir her successful a scannable profile, and fed the punctual backmost to ChatGPT. You tin effort the aforesaid approach. You mightiness beryllium amazed by what and however overmuch it returns.