AI tools and client data
Is GitHub Copilot safe for client data?
Short answer: Whether GitHub Copilot 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 Copilot Free, Pro, Pro+ and Max (individual), GitHub may use what staff type to train its models unless somebody turns that off; on Copilot Business and Copilot Enterprise, GitHub says it does not train its models on what staff type, by default. Every fact on this page is GitHub'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 GitHub’s own words
The coding assistant in the editor. It reads the repository someone has open, which in a practice that builds anything is where client data models live.
| What you are asking | Copilot Free, Pro, Pro+ and Max (individual) | Copilot Business and Copilot Enterprise |
|---|---|---|
| Trains the vendor's models by default | Yes, since 24 April 2026, unless the person opts out. GitHub names inputs, outputs, code snippets and context.“GitHub may use your interactions with GitHub features and services—including inputs, outputs, code snippets, and associated context—to train and improve AI models.” source, read | No. GitHub says business and enterprise customer data is not used to train models, under its data protection agreement.“GitHub does not use Copilot Business or Copilot Enterprise customer data to train AI models.” source, read |
| How to turn training off | A personal setting: “Allow GitHub to use my data for AI model training”, set to Disabled.“You can opt-out from allowing your data to be used for training in your personal settings for GitHub Copilot.” source, read | Nothing to turn off, and the absence of the setting is how you can tell which licence someone has.“the setting is not displayed for these plans” source, read |
| How long data is kept | Not found in the pages we read. | Not found in the pages we read. |
| What an admin can see or control | Not found in the pages we read. | An enterprise or organisation admin decides which Copilot features, agents and models people may use.“Policies control which GitHub Copilot features, agents, and models your users can access, and how they can use those features.” source, read |
| Single sign-on | Not found in the pages we read. | SAML, through the enterprise account that holds the Copilot licences.“Single sign-on (SSO) gives organization owners and enterprise owners a way to control and secure access to organization resources like repositories, issues, and pull requests.” source, read |
| Business Associate Agreement | Not found in the pages we read. | Not found in the pages we 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 GitHub 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 GitHub 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. We didn't find a BAA statement in the pages listed below; ask GitHub before any patient data goes in. 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 GitHub’s own documentation. Each one is a change somebody can make this afternoon.
- Check which licence each developer is on. If they can see the training setting at all, they are not on a business licence.“verify that you are not signed in with an account that has a Copilot Business or Copilot Enterprise license” source, read
Questions we get asked
Is GitHub Copilot safe for client data?
Whether GitHub Copilot 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 Copilot Free, Pro, Pro+ and Max (individual), GitHub may use what staff type to train its models unless somebody turns that off; on Copilot Business and Copilot Enterprise, GitHub says it does not train its models on what staff type, by default.
Every fact on this page is GitHub'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 GitHub train its models on what our staff type into GitHub Copilot?
On Copilot Free, Pro, Pro+ and Max (individual), GitHub may use what staff type to train its models unless somebody turns that off; on Copilot Business and Copilot Enterprise, GitHub says it does not train its models on what staff type, by default.
On Copilot Free, Pro, Pro+ and Max (individual): Yes, since 24 April 2026, unless the person opts out. GitHub names inputs, outputs, code snippets and context.
GitHub's own words: "GitHub may use your interactions with GitHub features and services—including inputs, outputs, code snippets, and associated context—to train and improve AI models." (read 2026-11-02).
On Copilot Business and Copilot Enterprise: No. GitHub says business and enterprise customer data is not used to train models, under its data protection agreement.
GitHub's own words: "GitHub does not use Copilot Business or Copilot Enterprise customer data to train AI models." (read 2026-11-02).
How long does GitHub keep what we put into GitHub Copilot?
On Copilot Free, Pro, Pro+ and Max (individual): Not found in the pages we read. On Copilot Business and Copilot Enterprise: Not found in the pages we read.
Can an administrator read what our staff typed into GitHub Copilot?
An enterprise or organisation admin decides which Copilot features, agents and models people may use. GitHub's own words: "Policies control which GitHub Copilot features, agents, and models your users can access, and how they can use those features." (read 2026-11-02).
Will GitHub sign a Business Associate Agreement for GitHub Copilot?
We didn't find a BAA statement in the pages listed below; ask GitHub before any patient data goes in.
How do we find out which version of GitHub Copilot 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
GitHub’s own pages, with the date each was read. Nothing on this page comes from anywhere else.
- docs.github.com/copilot/how-tos/manage-your-account/managing-copilot-policies-as-an-individual-subscriber, read
- docs.github.com/en/copilot/concepts/enterprise/policies, read
- docs.github.com/en/enterprise-cloud@latest/admin/managing-iam/using-saml-for-enterprise-iam/configuring-saml-single-sign-on-for-your-enterprise, read
All 15 tools, side by side, or run the AI tool risk checker over the ones you know about.
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