How to Protect Your Data When Using AI Tools: Settings That Matter
Most AI chatbots train on your chats by default. This guide shows how to protect your data when using AI tools, with the exact setting in each major chatbot.
By Galactic News Editorial · Published 2026-11-07T22:38:16+00:00 · Updated 2026-11-07T22:38:16+00:00
How to Protect Your Data When Using AI Tools: Settings That Matter
Most AI chatbots can use your conversations to train their models, and on consumer plans that training is usually switched on by default. A few settings change that. This guide shows how to protect your data when using AI tools, with the exact setting to change in ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, and Copilot, plus the habits that matter more than any toggle.
The key fact is simple. Paying for a consumer plan does not switch off training. Neither does deleting your chat history. The switch that stops training sits three clicks deep in a settings menu most people never open. Find it once, and it stays off.
The rule that comes before any setting
No setting makes a chatbot private. Providers can still review chats for abuse, safety, and legal reasons. Authorized staff and trusted service providers may access content when they need to investigate a problem or provide support. So the first rule is about what you type, not what you toggle.
Do not paste passwords, API keys, or access tokens. Do not paste client names, patient details, or anything that identifies a person in a sensitive context. Do not paste unreleased business figures, contract text, or legal documents. If a prompt would be a problem printed on a billboard, do not send it to a chatbot.
Strip personal details before you paste. Replace real names with roles. Replace real numbers with rounded examples. You usually get the same quality of answer, and the risk drops sharply.
How to protect data when using AI tools: the ChatGPT setting
On personal ChatGPT plans, Free, Plus, and Pro, data sharing is on by default. The setting is called Improve the model for everyone. Turn it off, and OpenAI says your new conversations will not be used to train its models. Your chat history stays. Turning the setting off does not delete or hide saved chats.
Follow these steps on the web while signed in:
- Open your account menu.
- Select Settings.
- Select Data controls.
- Select Improve the model for everyone, turn it off, and select Done.
On mobile, open the sidebar, tap your profile icon to open Settings, then follow the same path. When you are signed in, the choice applies to your account on every device, so you only need to do it once.
Two exceptions survive the toggle. If you rate an answer with a thumbs up or thumbs down, OpenAI may use the entire conversation behind that rating to train its models, even after you opted out. And in Trusted Access sessions, such as Daybreak, your content may be used to improve models even when the toggle is off.
Business, Enterprise, and Edu workspaces are the reverse. OpenAI does not use content from those workspaces for training by default. If you handle sensitive work in ChatGPT, a business workspace is the stronger option.
Claude: turn off Help improve Claude
Claude changed its default in August 2025. Free, Pro, and Max users now train Claude unless they opt out. The switch is under Settings, then Privacy, and it is called Help improve Claude. Turn it off.
Anthropic says that after you opt out, new chats and coding sessions will no longer be used for future model training. It will also stop using previously stored conversations in future training runs. Data already included in training cannot be removed.
Retention is tied to the same choice. If you leave training on, Anthropic extends data retention to five years. If you opt out, you keep the existing 30-day retention period. If safety classifiers flag a conversation, it may still be used to improve trust and safety models, detect harmful content, and enforce policies.
Gemini: turn off Gemini Apps Activity
Gemini on a personal Google account trains by default through a setting called Gemini Apps Activity. Turn it off in your Google Account settings. After that, new chats are not kept for training in the same way, and reviewed chats are handled under Google's shorter retention window.
Human reviewers may still see chats that are selected for review, and those can be kept for up to three years. The setting reduces what is stored. It does not make the service a private channel.
Perplexity: turn off AI data retention
In Perplexity, go to Settings, then Preferences, then AI data retention, and turn the setting off. Perplexity says this prevents data collected after you opt out from being used to train AI models. The change applies going forward. It does not undo training on data already used.
Perplexity also lets you delete individual threads. Use that for anything you wish you had not pasted. Deleting a thread removes it from your history, but it does not change what the provider already processed.
Copilot: turn off training on conversation activity
For personal Copilot accounts, the switch is under Settings, then Privacy, and it is called Training on conversation activity. Turn it off to stop future chats from being used for training. Advertising, safety, security, and compliance uses continue. Business Copilot with enterprise data protection does not train by default.
Use Temporary Chat for one-off sensitive questions
ChatGPT offers Temporary Chat for single sessions. Temporary chats are not used to train models, are not saved in your history, and do not create memories. OpenAI may keep a copy for up to 30 days for safety. Deleted chats are scheduled for permanent deletion within 30 days, unless a legal or security hold applies.
Claude offers a similar option. Incognito chats in Claude are not used for training. Use these modes when a question is sensitive but you still need an answer. Do not use them as a reason to paste secrets. The same rule applies: if it identifies someone, do not paste it.
Delete chats, links, and memories on purpose
Opting out of training does not delete anything. If you want a conversation gone, delete it separately. Archived chats stay archived. Shared links stay live until you delete them. Check your shared links page and remove old ones.
Memory is a separate setting from training. In ChatGPT, memory lives under Settings, then Personalization. Turning off training does not stop ChatGPT remembering things about you. Turn memory off too if you do not want the tool to store facts across chats.
Voice mode has its own control for sharing data for model training. If you use voice, check that setting separately. It is not covered by the main text-chat toggle.
When you need stronger protection
For work data, use a business tier. ChatGPT Business and Enterprise, Claude Team and Enterprise, Gemini for Workspace, Copilot with enterprise data protection, and Perplexity Enterprise do not train on your data by default. They also give administrators control over how long data is kept.
For the most sensitive material, use the provider's API with a zero data retention agreement where one is available, or keep the work offline entirely. No consumer chatbot, on any setting, is a privileged channel. A lawyer, doctor, or anyone handling client confidences should treat a chatbot prompt as a disclosure to a third party.
Bottom line
Protecting your data in AI tools takes ten minutes. Turn off the training toggle in every tool you use. Use Temporary Chat for sensitive one-offs. Delete chats and links you no longer need. And never paste the things no setting can take back. The toggles stop future training. Your habits stop the real leaks.