Practical Answers for Everyday Independence

Using AI Safely & Protecting Your Privacy – QG

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Category: Quick Guide / Technology

⚡ Using AI Safely & Protecting Your Privacy

Artificial intelligence tools can help explain topics, organize ideas, draft messages, summarize information, and answer questions.

They can also make mistakes, misunderstand what you mean, or provide information that sounds confident but is not correct.

Use this guide to protect your privacy and decide when an AI-generated answer needs to be checked.

Before Entering Anything Into an AI Tool

Pause and ask:

  • Does this contain private information?
  • Does it identify me or someone else?
  • Do I have permission to share it?
  • Would it be harmful if another person saw it?
  • Is this information protected by my employer, school, doctor, or another organization?
  • Can I ask the question without including specific names or details?

If you are unsure, leave the information out.

Do Not Enter Highly Sensitive Information

Avoid entering:

  • Passwords
  • PINs
  • Verification codes
  • Recovery codes
  • Social Security numbers
  • Driver’s license or passport numbers
  • Bank or credit card information
  • Complete medical records
  • Insurance identification numbers
  • Tax documents
  • Legal documents containing private information
  • Confidential work or school information
  • Private information about another person
  • Intimate photographs or messages
  • Exact information that could reveal where you live

An AI tool does not need your password or verification code to help you.

Remove Identifying Details

You can often get help without sharing real information.

Instead of entering:

“My daughter Emily Smith, born May 14, 2008, attends Central High School and has…”

Use:

“My teenage daughter is having difficulty with…”

Replace identifying information with general descriptions such as:

  • My family member
  • My employer
  • My doctor
  • My town
  • A medical condition
  • A monthly expense
  • A customer
  • A student

Include only the details necessary to answer the question.

Be Careful When Uploading Files and Photos

Before uploading a document, screenshot, photograph, or recording:

  1. Open it and review everything it contains.
  2. Check every page.
  3. Look for names, addresses, account numbers, signatures, and identification numbers.
  4. Check the background of photographs.
  5. Crop or cover information the AI does not need.
  6. Confirm that you have permission to share information about other people.
  7. Consider creating a copy with private details removed.

A screenshot may reveal notifications, browser tabs, email addresses, account balances, or other information beyond what you intended to share.

Review the AI Tool’s Privacy Settings

Look for settings related to:

  • Saving chat history
  • Using conversations to improve the service
  • Personalization or memory
  • Connected apps
  • Shared links
  • Data exports
  • Deleting conversations
  • Temporary chats
  • Voice recordings
  • Account deletion

Choose the settings that match your comfort level.

Remember that deleting a visible conversation may not always mean every copy of the information is immediately removed. Review the service’s privacy information if the details matter to you.

Protect Your AI Account

If the AI service requires an account:

  1. Use a long, unique password.
  2. Store the password securely.
  3. Turn on multifactor authentication.
  4. Review active sessions and connected devices.
  5. Remove devices you no longer use.
  6. Do not share the account.
  7. Sign out when using a shared device.

Someone who enters your account may be able to read saved conversations and view information you previously shared.

Do Not Assume an AI Answer Is Correct

AI can:

  • Misunderstand a question
  • Use outdated information
  • Confuse similar people or topics
  • Invent facts, quotations, sources, or links
  • Make calculation errors
  • Leave out important exceptions
  • Give different answers to the same question
  • Present an opinion as though it were a fact

A polished or confident answer is not proof that it is accurate.

Verify Important Information

Before relying on an answer:

  1. Ask the AI to explain its reasoning.
  2. Request sources.
  3. Open and read the sources yourself.
  4. Confirm that the sources exist.
  5. Check the publication date.
  6. Compare the answer with an official or trusted source.
  7. Ask a qualified person when the consequences are serious.

Do not trust a citation simply because it looks professional. AI can sometimes provide a real-looking title, quotation, or website that is inaccurate or does not exist.

Use Extra Caution With High-Stakes Questions

Do not rely only on AI when making decisions about:

  • Medical symptoms or treatment
  • Medication
  • Emergencies
  • Legal rights or deadlines
  • Taxes
  • Investments
  • Loans or debt
  • Insurance
  • Government benefits
  • Employment decisions
  • Personal safety
  • Repairing dangerous equipment

AI can help you understand terminology, organize questions, or prepare for a conversation. A qualified professional or official source should confirm important decisions.

If someone may be in immediate danger, contact emergency services or the appropriate local crisis resource rather than waiting for an AI response.

Do Not Let AI Make the Final Decision for You

AI may help compare options, but it does not know everything about your needs, values, responsibilities, or situation.

Before acting:

  • Review the answer yourself.
  • Consider what information may be missing.
  • Think about who could be affected.
  • Check for unfair assumptions.
  • Ask another person when appropriate.
  • Make sure the decision is yours.

AI should support your judgment, not replace it.

Review AI-Generated Writing Before Using It

Before sending, posting, or submitting AI-generated text:

  1. Read every word.
  2. Confirm that the facts are correct.
  3. Remove invented details.
  4. Check names, dates, numbers, and links.
  5. Make sure the tone is appropriate.
  6. Confirm that it sounds like you.
  7. Follow workplace or school rules about AI use.
  8. Take responsibility for the final version.

Do not send an AI-generated message on your behalf without reading it first.

Follow Work and School Rules

Your workplace or school may limit which AI tools you can use and what information you may enter.

Do not upload:

  • Customer or patient information
  • Student records
  • Internal reports
  • Unreleased plans
  • Personnel information
  • Protected research
  • Confidential emails
  • Documents marked private or confidential

Use only approved tools for work or school information. Ask a supervisor, teacher, or technology department if the rules are unclear.

Watch for AI-Enhanced Scams

Scammers may use AI to create:

  • Realistic voices
  • Fake photographs
  • Altered videos
  • Convincing emails
  • False customer-service chats
  • Fake job offers
  • Investment claims
  • Impersonations of family members
  • Fake reviews or news stories

If a voice, video, or message asks for money or private information:

  1. Stop communicating.
  2. Do not send money.
  3. Contact the person through a number you already know.
  4. Verify the story with another trusted person.
  5. Contact the organization through its official app or website.
  6. Report the account or message if it is fraudulent.

Seeing or hearing someone is no longer enough to prove that a message is real.

Be Careful With AI-Generated Images and Recordings

Do not create or share content that:

  • Impersonates someone without permission
  • Falsely shows someone doing or saying something
  • Reveals private information
  • Harasses or embarrasses another person
  • Uses intimate images without consent
  • Misleads people about an emergency, event, or public issue

Label AI-generated material when people could reasonably mistake it for something real.

If You Shared Sensitive Information

Act based on what you entered.

If You Shared a Password or Verification Code

  1. Change the password through the official website or app.
  2. Change it anywhere else you reused it.
  3. Turn on multifactor authentication.
  4. Sign out of other sessions.
  5. Review the account for unfamiliar activity.

If You Shared Financial Information

  1. Contact your bank or card issuer.
  2. Review recent transactions.
  3. Replace affected cards or account numbers if recommended.
  4. Turn on transaction alerts.

If You Shared Personal Identification Information

  1. Visit IdentityTheft.gov.
  2. Follow the recommended recovery steps.
  3. Monitor your financial and credit accounts.
  4. Consider a credit freeze or fraud alert when appropriate.

If You Shared Someone Else’s Information

  1. Delete the conversation if the tool permits it.
  2. Review the tool’s privacy and data controls.
  3. Tell the appropriate person or organization if the information was confidential or protected.
  4. Follow workplace, school, medical, or legal reporting requirements.

Quick AI Safety Check

Before using an AI answer, ask:

  • Did I remove private and identifying information?
  • Do I have permission to share this material?
  • Could the file or photo reveal more than I intended?
  • Do I understand how the service may store or use my information?
  • Did I verify important facts?
  • Are the sources real and current?
  • Does a qualified person need to confirm the answer?
  • Did I review the final work before using it?
  • Could the content harm, mislead, or impersonate someone?

AI can be a useful tool when you protect private information, check important answers, and keep yourself in control of the final decision.