Is ChatGPT safe to use? What should I never put into AI?

A few categories are worth calling out specifically.

ChatGPT does not need your actual password to explain how to reset one, create a stronger one or troubleshoot a login problem.

“My password is not being accepted. What should I check?”

Do not paste the password itself.

Never paste a login code, banking approval code or one-time password into ChatGPT.

Those codes are designed to prove that you are the person signing in or approving an action. Treat them like temporary keys.

Do not give ChatGPT:

• online-banking usernames where unnecessary
• banking passwords
• PINs
• full authentication details
• approval codes

ChatGPT can explain a banking term or help you understand a non-sensitive error without needing access credentials.

Do not paste:

• full card number
• expiry date
• security code
• PIN

If you need help understanding a card charge, describe the problem without exposing the complete card details.

Do not paste:

• account recovery codes
• cryptocurrency wallet seed phrases
• encryption keys
• API keys
• private security keys

These can provide direct access to accounts, systems or assets.

Not all personal information is equally sensitive.

For example, ChatGPT may genuinely need to know your country, approximate age range, device type or general preferences to give a useful answer.

But ask: “Does ChatGPT actually need this detail?”

Instead of:

“My name is [name], I live at [address] and here is my account number…”

use:

“I’m in South Africa and I need help understanding this type of account.”

If the exact identity detail does not improve the answer, leave it out.

They can be very useful — but look at them before uploading.

ChatGPT can help with supported documents, screenshots and images. Before uploading something, check whether it contains:

• account numbers
• ID numbers
• home addresses
• passwords
• QR codes linked to private accounts
• signatures
• private correspondence
• medical information
• confidential business information
• information about other people

If ChatGPT does not need those details, crop, cover or remove them first.

For example: instead of uploading an entire bank statement to ask what one term means, crop or copy only the part containing the term — without account details.

Normal ChatGPT conversations can appear in your chat history.

Depending on your settings and account type, content from consumer ChatGPT services may be used to help improve OpenAI’s models unless you turn this off.

You have controls over this — covered below.

Yes.

For consumer ChatGPT, go to:

Settings → Data Controls

Turn off:

Improve the model for everyone

When this is off, new conversations are not used to train OpenAI’s models.

The chats can still remain in your chat history unless you delete them or use Temporary Chat.

Temporary Chat is useful when you do not want a conversation handled like a normal saved chat.

According to current OpenAI guidance, Temporary Chats:

• do not appear in normal chat history
• do not create memories
• are not used to train OpenAI’s models
• are deleted from OpenAI systems after 30 days

Temporary Chat is not permission to paste passwords, banking credentials or other secrets. Privacy controls reduce exposure — they do not turn sensitive credentials into safe material to share.

When Memory is enabled, ChatGPT can remember useful context from your chats, files and connected apps so future conversations can be more personalised.

Examples might include preferences, projects, recurring interests, or information that helps avoid repeating yourself.

Current path:

Settings → Personalization → Memory

Memory is optional and can be turned off.

Not necessarily.

Chat history and Memory are separate systems.

Deleting a conversation does not automatically mean every remembered detail associated with it disappears from Memory.

If you want to review what ChatGPT remembers, check:

Settings → Personalization → Memory

Be more careful with workplace information.

Do not paste confidential employer information simply because ChatGPT would make the task easier. Treat these carefully:

• customer details
• employee records
• unreleased business plans
• confidential contracts
• internal security information
• proprietary source code or credentials
• commercially sensitive data

If your employer provides an approved business AI account or company policy, follow that policy.

Business, Enterprise, Edu and other organisational plans can have different data-handling arrangements from consumer ChatGPT.

Instead of:

“Here is my full letter with my name, address, account number and reference number.”

Use:

“I removed my personal details. Please explain what this paragraph means.”

Or replace details with placeholders:

[NAME] · [ACCOUNT NUMBER] · [ADDRESS]

Often ChatGPT needs the situation — not your identity.

1. Share only what is needed.
2. Never paste passwords, PINs or one-time codes.
3. Remove unnecessary personal details from documents and screenshots.
4. Use Data Controls and Temporary Chat when appropriate.
5. Stop before uploading and ask: “Does AI actually need this information to help me?”

I use AI every day.

My rule is not “never share anything” — that would make AI far less useful.

My rule is: give it what it needs to help me, and leave out what it doesn’t need.

I would never paste my password, banking login or security codes into AI.

— Majdi