The AI Privacy Checklist

The never-paste list

Some things don’t go into any AI chat, period:

• Passwords, API keys, or recovery codes (nothing needs these to help you — anything asking for them is a scam)
• Full account, card, or government ID numbers
• Other people’s private information they haven’t consented to share — your friend’s medical situation, a client’s financials with their name attached
• Anything under an NDA whose terms you haven’t checked

The 30-second redaction habit

Most “sensitive” documents are one find-replace away from safe. Before pasting: swap names for roles (“my client” / “Person A”), delete ID and account numbers (AI needs the transactions, not the account number — see /r/audit), round any number that could identify someone. The insight: AI needs the shape of your situation, almost never the identifying details.

The four settings to check today (10 minutes)

1. Training toggle — most AI apps let you opt out of your chats being used to improve models. Find it (usually Settings → Data controls) and set it the way you want.
2. Memory contents — if memory is on, review what’s accumulated. Delete anything you wouldn’t want in there. You might be surprised.
3. Chat history hygiene — delete chats containing sensitive stuff you pasted before reading this guide. (We’ve all done it.)
4. Connected apps — check what you’ve plugged into your AI apps (email, drive, calendar) and disconnect what you don’t actively use. Every connection is surface area.

The work-data rule

If your company has an approved AI tool with a business agreement, use that for work data — those agreements typically include no-training and retention terms your personal account doesn’t have. If your company has no policy, the redaction habit above plus common sense (“would I email this to an outside consultant?”) is your fallback — and maybe forward this guide to whoever should be writing that policy.

The scam layer

(Because AI privacy includes people using AI on you): voice-cloning scam calls exist now — agree on a family code word for money-related emergency calls. “AI tool” sites you’ve never heard of that demand accounts, payment info, or downloads to show you a result: close the tab. The real tools have real reputations you can check.

The perspective

The goal isn’t zero data shared — that’s just not using AI. The goal is deliberate sharing: knowing what you’re pasting, where it’s going, and what settings govern it. Five habits, and you’re more careful than 95% of users.

Related: /r/setup · /r/audit · /r/agents