AI tools and client data
Is ChatGPT safe for client data?
Short answer: Whether ChatGPT is safe for client data turns on which plan your staff are on, which account they signed in with, and what you have told them they may put in it — not on the product itself. On Free, Go, Plus and Pro (personal account), OpenAI may use what staff type to train its models unless somebody turns that off; on Business, Enterprise and ChatGPT for Healthcare, OpenAI says it does not train its models on what staff type, by default. Every fact on this page is OpenAI's own, quoted from its own pages and dated, and where we did not find a statement this page says so rather than filling the gap. Obsidian Ridge's free 30-day AI security assessment shows which AI tools your staff actually use.
See which AI tools your staff usePlan by plan, in OpenAI’s own words
A general assistant people reach for in a browser tab, a desktop app or a phone, with the same account following them between work and home.
| What you are asking | Free, Go, Plus and Pro (personal account) | Business, Enterprise and ChatGPT for Healthcare |
|---|---|---|
| Trains the vendor's models by default | Yes. On a personal account, OpenAI says data sharing for model improvement is on until someone turns it off.“On personal workspaces with ChatGPT Free, Plus, or Pro, data sharing is enabled by default.” source, read | No, not by default. OpenAI says business data is excluded unless the customer opts in.“We do not train our models on your data by default” source, read |
| How to turn training off | Settings, then Data controls, then switch off Improve the model for everyone. Chat history stays.“You can turn off Improve the model for everyone and keep your chat history.” source, read | Nothing to turn off, but an explicit opt-in — including a feedback mechanism — puts data back in scope.“If you have explicitly opted in to share your data with us … we may use the shared data to train our models.” source, read |
| How long data is kept | OpenAI publishes a period for temporary chats only; it states none for ordinary saved chats on a personal plan.“may be retained for up to 30 days for safety purposes” source, read | Admins set it. OpenAI says a deleted or unsaved conversation leaves its systems within 30 days.“Any deleted or unsaved conversations are removed from our systems within 30 days” source, read |
| What an admin can see or control | Not found in the pages we read. | On Business, an admin can read staff conversations. Worth knowing before anyone pastes something personal.“Workspace admins have control over workspaces and can view, access, export, and delete end user conversations in the workspace.” source, read |
| Single sign-on | Not found in the pages we read. | SAML single sign-on.“Enterprise-level authentication through SAML SSO” source, read |
| Business Associate Agreement | Not found in the pages we read. | OpenAI says it can sign one; the sentence sits in its API Platform FAQ, and ChatGPT for Healthcare is its HIPAA workspace.“We are able to sign Business Associate Agreements (BAA) in support of customers' compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).” source, read |
| Where the data is processed | Not found in the pages we read. | Not found in the pages we read. |
An empty cell is not a reassurance and not a criticism. "Not found in the pages we read." means the OpenAI pages listed under Sources, read on the dates shown, do not answer it — so there is nothing for us to repeat, and something for you to ask OpenAI before client information goes near it.
What this means for
The duty does not change because the tool is new. What changes is where the client information ends up.
- Law firms. A client confidence pasted into a personal account has left the firm’s control. Our law firm page sets out the duties we build evidence for; the decision here is whether a personal account may touch a client matter at all.
- Dental and medical practices. OpenAI publishes a BAA position for this product, which is where that conversation starts. See dental practices.
- CPA and accounting firms. Your written information security plan has to describe the tools people actually use, not the ones you approved. See accounting firms.
- Financial advisers. Client account data in a personal assistant is the exposure; see financial advisers.
- Software teams. A coding assistant reads the repository and can run commands, so the question is what it can reach, not what it was asked. See what AI agents on work laptops can reach.
How to tell which version your staff use
The plan is the whole answer, and you cannot tell from the outside. Three ways to find out, in order of how much they prove.
1. Ask
Quick, free, and incomplete. People forget the tool they installed once and the account they signed in with.
2. Look at the billing and the admin console
This finds what the business pays for. It does not find a personal account, which is the one that matters here.
3. Look on the computers
A tool somebody installed themselves never appears in an IT list. Obsidian Ridge’s free 30-day AI security assessment takes a quiet inventory for 30 days and shows what each tool could reach, then a CISSP goes through it with you. See the assessment, or read a sample set of findings.
Settings to check today
From OpenAI’s own documentation. Each one is a change somebody can make this afternoon.
- On every personal account that touches client work: Settings, Data controls, Improve the model for everyone, off.“Select Improve the model for everyone, turn it off, and select Done.” source, read
- Tell staff that a thumbs up or down sends the whole conversation, whatever the training setting says.“the entire conversation associated with that feedback may be used to train OpenAI models” source, read
- If anyone uses Codex, check its own setting too: the ChatGPT one does not cover it.“Changing your ChatGPT setting or opting out through the Privacy Portal does not change that setting.” source, read
Worth knowing
- Turning training off does not remove anything already saved. Deleting a chat is a separate action.“Turning off Improve the model for everyone does not delete or hide saved chats.” source, read
Questions we get asked
Is ChatGPT safe for client data?
Whether ChatGPT is safe for client data turns on which plan your staff are on, which account they signed in with, and what you have told them they may put in it — not on the product itself.
On Free, Go, Plus and Pro (personal account), OpenAI may use what staff type to train its models unless somebody turns that off; on Business, Enterprise and ChatGPT for Healthcare, OpenAI says it does not train its models on what staff type, by default.
Every fact on this page is OpenAI's own, quoted from its own pages and dated, and where we did not find a statement this page says so rather than filling the gap.
Does OpenAI train its models on what our staff type into ChatGPT?
On Free, Go, Plus and Pro (personal account), OpenAI may use what staff type to train its models unless somebody turns that off; on Business, Enterprise and ChatGPT for Healthcare, OpenAI says it does not train its models on what staff type, by default.
On Free, Go, Plus and Pro (personal account): Yes. On a personal account, OpenAI says data sharing for model improvement is on until someone turns it off.
OpenAI's own words: "On personal workspaces with ChatGPT Free, Plus, or Pro, data sharing is enabled by default." (read 2026-11-02). On Business, Enterprise and ChatGPT for Healthcare: No, not by default.
OpenAI says business data is excluded unless the customer opts in. OpenAI's own words: "We do not train our models on your data by default" (read 2026-11-02).
How long does OpenAI keep what we put into ChatGPT?
On Free, Go, Plus and Pro (personal account): OpenAI publishes a period for temporary chats only; it states none for ordinary saved chats on a personal plan.
OpenAI's own words: "may be retained for up to 30 days for safety purposes" (read 2026-11-02). On Business, Enterprise and ChatGPT for Healthcare: Admins set it.
OpenAI says a deleted or unsaved conversation leaves its systems within 30 days. OpenAI's own words: "Any deleted or unsaved conversations are removed from our systems within 30 days" (read 2026-11-02).
Can an administrator read what our staff typed into ChatGPT?
On Business, an admin can read staff conversations. Worth knowing before anyone pastes something personal. OpenAI's own words: "Workspace admins have control over workspaces and can view, access, export, and delete end user conversations in the workspace." (read 2026-11-02).
Will OpenAI sign a Business Associate Agreement for ChatGPT?
OpenAI says it can sign one; the sentence sits in its API Platform FAQ, and ChatGPT for Healthcare is its HIPAA workspace.
OpenAI's own words: "We are able to sign Business Associate Agreements (BAA) in support of customers' compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)." (read 2026-11-02).
A signed BAA is between your practice and OpenAI; we do not sign it for you, and we do not read a compliance badge as one.
How do we find out which version of ChatGPT our staff are using?
Look on the computers. A tool somebody installed themselves, or signed into with a personal account, does not appear in any IT list. Obsidian Ridge's free 30-day AI security assessment takes that inventory for 30 days and shows what each tool could reach.
Sources
OpenAI’s own pages, with the date each was read. Nothing on this page comes from anywhere else.
All 15 tools, side by side, or run the AI tool risk checker over the ones you know about.
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Same question, different answers. The ones in the same category are the ones staff swap between.
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