Chatbot’s overseers accused of collecting, using, disclosing personal info without consent
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada is investigating OpenAI’s generative language app ChatGPT after the watchdog received a complaint claiming the software was collecting, using, and disclosing personal information without consent.
« AI technology and its effects on privacy is a priority for my Office, » the country’s privacy commissioner Philippe Dufresne declared in a statement this week. « We need to keep up with – and stay ahead of – fast-moving technological advances, and that is one of my key focus areas as commissioner. »
Launched last November, ChatGPT went viral as hundreds of millions of netizens flocked to the free tool to generate all types of text. While it may be fun to get the engine to write bad jokes or essay drafts, authorities are growing increasingly concerned about the privacy risks the technology poses.
Italy was the first country to announce it was investigating ChatGPT to see whether the software unlawfully collects data on its citizens, and if the technology could harm minors under the age of 13.
