ChatGPT is a mainstream service with a published privacy policy, but whether it is safe for you depends on what you type and which settings you use. As of 24 October 2026, OpenAI says it may train its models on your chats unless you opt out, and it keeps logs of your device and activity. Treat a chat like a message to a company: leave out passwords, IDs and other people's private details.
01What does ChatGPT collect when you use it?
OpenAI's US privacy policy, last updated 10 September 2026, lists several kinds of data. The biggest is your content: the prompts you type and the files, images, audio and video you upload.
The policy also says OpenAI monitors content on its platform to prevent fraud and misuse, so a chat is not only between you and the model. It lists vendors, affiliates and authorities acting under the law among those who can receive data in set circumstances.
- Account details such as name, contact information, date of birth and payment history.
- Log, usage and device data, including your IP address, browser, the features you use and any feedback you give on a reply.
- A general location taken from your IP address, and precise location only if you choose to share it.
- For Free and Go users, information about the ads you view or engage with.
02Does OpenAI use your chats to train ChatGPT?
For individual accounts, yes by default. OpenAI's page on how your data is used to improve models, updated 13 March 2026, says ChatGPT improves partly by training on conversations unless you opt out. After you opt out, new conversations are not used for training. The page does not say that earlier training is undone.
Business products work differently. OpenAI says it does not train on inputs or outputs from ChatGPT Team, ChatGPT Enterprise or its API by default, so a work account is not the same as a personal one.
That includes memory. OpenAI's announcement says content you give ChatGPT, memories included, may be used to improve its models unless you turn that off in Data Controls.
OpenAI also says it takes steps to reduce personal information in training data. The pages we read do not describe how, so treat that as a company statement.
03How long does OpenAI keep your chats, and can you delete them?
The privacy policy says deleted chats are removed from OpenAI's systems within 30 days, unless the company must keep them for safety, security or legal reasons. Temporary Chats are deleted automatically within 30 days, with the same exceptions.
A court case changed this in 2025. OpenAI says a legal order to keep consumer ChatGPT content, linked to a lawsuit by The New York Times, ended on 26 September 2025, and that it returned to the 30-day practice. It adds that it still stores a limited set of April to September 2025 data under legal hold.
Saved memories are separate. OpenAI's memory announcement says deleting a chat does not erase what ChatGPT remembered from it; you delete the memory itself.
04What should you never paste into ChatGPT?
OpenAI's own policy admits that no online transmission is fully secure and asks users to think carefully about what they submit. Use that as the rule: if a leak would hurt you or someone else, do not paste it.
The policy also warns that ChatGPT predicts likely words, so replies can be factually wrong. Check anything important before acting on it. This is general information, not legal, medical or security advice.
- Passwords, recovery codes, API keys and banking details.
- Government ID numbers, full medical records, and anything covered by a confidentiality agreement.
- Other people's private details, such as a friend's health news or a customer list.
- Work files your employer has not approved for outside tools.
- Photos or documents that identify children.
Opting out and deleting limit future use. They cannot pull back a screenshot, a shared conversation link or training that already happened. The safest data is data you never typed.
05Which ChatGPT settings are worth checking today?
Menus change, so treat this as a map as of 24 October 2026, not a list of exact buttons. The labels come from OpenAI's own pages; if your screen differs, search OpenAI's Help Center for the current wording.
- Open Settings, then Data Controls, and find the switch named 'Improve the model for everyone'. Turning it off stops new chats from being used for training.
- For a sensitive one-off question, start a Temporary Chat. OpenAI says these do not appear in history, do not use or create memories, and are not used for training.
- Open Settings, then Personalization, and review Memory. OpenAI says you can switch it off or delete individual memories there.
- Use the export option in Data Controls to see what OpenAI holds, and delete chats you no longer need.
- On a Free or Go account, check the advertising controls in your account settings.
OpenAI's help article says turning training off does not delete anything: your chats stay in your history until you delete them.
06Is it safe to download the app, and what about teens?
OpenAI lists its official apps on its download page: a macOS desktop app, mobile apps for iOS and Android, and a Chrome extension. Start from that page or the store listing it links to, not from an ad or a message, because a copy from anywhere else is not OpenAI's.
On age, the privacy policy says the service is not meant for children under 13, and that people under 18 need a parent or guardian's permission. Teens and parents can link accounts, which lets a parent manage some settings and get alerts if OpenAI detects a serious safety concern. This is general information, not parenting or legal advice.
07What have regulators said about ChatGPT?
Italy's data protection authority, the Garante, announced a 15 million euro fine against OpenAI on 20 December 2024. It cited training on personal data without an adequate legal basis, transparency failures, no age checks, and an unreported March 2023 data breach.
That is not the final word. The Garante's page now notes that the Court of Rome upheld OpenAI's appeal in a judgment published on 18 March 2026, and that Ireland's Data Protection Commission is now OpenAI's lead authority in the EU. We have not read the judgment and do not state its reasons. A set-aside decision is not a finding that every practice was fine either.
?What is not known
- OpenAI's help-center articles blocked our automated reader, so the setting names above come from OpenAI's policy pages and from search excerpts of the help article. Confirm the labels in your own app.
- The pages we read do not say whether earlier training is undone for people who opt out later.
- European regulators have not settled all questions about training chatbots on personal data, and the Italian fine was set aside by a court in March 2026.
- Policies and settings change often; OpenAI's US privacy policy was updated as recently as 10 September 2026.
QQuestions people ask
Does ChatGPT share my chats with other people?
Not by default; sharing is something you do, for example by sharing a conversation. The policy lists vendors, affiliates, authorities acting under the law and business account administrators as groups that can receive data in set circumstances.
Does paying for a personal plan stop training on my chats?
The pages we read draw the line between individual and business products, not between free and paid personal plans. Check your own Data Controls setting rather than assuming.
Can ChatGPT give wrong answers about real people?
OpenAI's policy says it can, because it predicts likely words rather than checking facts. It points to a privacy portal and an email address for requests to correct or remove inaccurate information about you.
Last checked October 24, 2026. Rules and settings change, so open the source to see the current version.
- OpenAI US privacy policy OpenAI The company's own policy, dated 10 September 2026; we used it for data collected, retention, deletion, age rules and the security warning.
- How your data is used to improve model performance OpenAI OpenAI's explanation of training on individual versus business content, the opt-out and Temporary Chat.
- Response to The New York Times data demands OpenAI OpenAI's account of a legal retention order and its end on 26 September 2025; we used it for the 30-day deletion practice.
- Memory and new controls for ChatGPT OpenAI Product announcement with later updates, used for where memory settings are and how memories are deleted.
- Data Controls FAQ OpenAI Help Center OpenAI's help article on Data Controls and Temporary Chat, used for the training switch label; read through search excerpts because the page blocked our reader.
- Garante press release on ChatGPT Garante per la protezione dei dati personali (Italy) Italy's regulator on its 2024 fine, with the note that a Court of Rome judgment later upheld OpenAI's appeal.
- Download ChatGPT OpenAI OpenAI's official download page, used to list the apps it offers.
General information, not legal, medical, financial or investment advice. We are not affiliated with any company, agency or standards body named here. See our editorial policy and corrections, or tell us about a mistake at [email protected].