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Safety guide

What Not to Share With ChatGPT: A Simple Privacy Guide for Beginners

ChatGPT can help you understand a letter, sort out a bill, or draft a note. Keep a few personal details out of the chat.

You can still get that help. Cover the private details first, then ask in plain English. This page shows the list, a safe way to ask, and the privacy settings worth knowing.

If you are opening ChatGPT for the first time, start with the complete beginner’s guide to ChatGPT. This page assumes you can already type a message and send it.

The short answer

Keep these six things out of ChatGPT. That includes the message box, photos, and screenshots.

  1. Passwords and security answers
  2. Social Security numbers and Medicare numbers
  3. Bank account numbers and card numbers
  4. Verification codes
  5. Full medical records that still show who you are
  6. Other people’s private information

A grocery list, a thank-you note, or a question about a confusing word is fine. The keys to your accounts are a different matter.

Why this matters

What you type is sent to OpenAI, the company that makes ChatGPT, so it can write a reply. On a personal account, that chat can stay in your history until you delete it.

Unless you change a setting, OpenAI may also use new chats from a personal account to improve ChatGPT. That includes the free version. OpenAI says it does not sell your chats or share them with advertisers.

OpenAI’s own help pages also say not to enter sensitive information you would not want reviewed or used. That is the practical rule. ChatGPT is a helper for everyday tasks. Keep passwords, ID numbers, and security codes to yourself.

The six things, and why

Each item below takes one sentence. You do not need to memorize a longer policy.

  1. Passwords and security answers. These can open your email, your bank, or other accounts. ChatGPT does not need them to help you write or explain something.
  2. Social Security numbers and Medicare numbers. These identify you to the government, doctors, and insurers. A question about a letter does not require the number itself.
  3. Bank account numbers and card numbers. That includes debit cards, credit cards, and the three-digit code on the back. Leave the amount in if you want help reading a bill. Leave the account number out.
  4. Verification codes. A code texted or emailed to you is a key to an account. If anyone asks you to read one aloud or type it into a chat, pause.
  5. Full medical records that still show who you are. A whole record often includes your name, date of birth, address, and member ID. You can still ask what a sentence means. Remove those identifying details first.
  6. Other people’s private information. A spouse’s Social Security number, a friend’s password, or a family member’s medical record deserves the same care you would want for your own.

How to get help with a letter, bill, or screenshot

You do not have to skip the task. Remove the private details, then ask ChatGPT to explain the rest.

Cover or delete:

  • your full name, home address, and date of birth
  • account numbers, member IDs, and claim numbers
  • Social Security or Medicare numbers
  • phone numbers and email addresses
  • barcodes and photos of an ID card

You can leave the ordinary wording, the dollar amount, and the due date. Those are what you want explained.

A before-and-after example

Imagine an insurance letter that says you may owe $86.40 by November 1. The paper also shows your name, home address, and member ID.

Leave this version unsent. The name, address, and member ID do not belong in the chat.

Please explain this letter. My name is Pat Reynolds and I live at 18 Cedar Lane. My member ID is printed at the top. It says I may owe $86.40 by November 1, or my coverage may change.

Send this version. The useful facts are still there.

I removed my name, address, and member ID. This letter says I may owe $86.40 by November 1, or my coverage may change. Please explain what it is asking me to do, in plain English. Then list questions I could ask the company. Do not tell me what to decide.

Pat Reynolds and 18 Cedar Lane are made-up examples, so you can see the difference. Use the second message, with your own letter’s ordinary wording, after you have covered your real details.

A safer way to ask about a letter

You

I removed my name, address, and member ID. This letter says I may owe $86.40 by November 1, or my coverage may change. Please explain what it is asking me to do, in plain English. Then list questions I could ask the company. Do not tell me what to decide.

ChatGPT

The letter says a payment of $86.40 may be due on November 1, and that coverage may change if it is not handled. I can’t see the original letter. Questions you could ask the company: Is this a bill or a notice? What happens if I pay it? What happens if I do not?

Your reply will not match this word for word. Read it, then check the original letter before you pay, call, or decide. ChatGPT can help you understand the words. It is not the company that sent the letter.

If you want to send a photo or screenshot

A picture of a bill or a phone screen can be useful. Cover the private details before you attach it. Crop the picture, or cover the lines with a piece of paper, then take the photo.

On an iPhone, the guide to ChatGPT on an iPhone shows how to take a screenshot and attach it. The same privacy rule applies on a computer and on Android.

Attach the covered picture first, then send this.

I covered the name, address, and account number. Please explain this in plain English. Then list questions I could ask the company. Do not tell me what to decide.

Privacy settings worth knowing

You can use ChatGPT for everyday tasks without changing a setting. The list above is the important habit. These settings give you more control if you want it.

Names on the screen can change a little when the app updates. If a label is not exact, look for Settings, then Data controls.

Chat history and “Improve the model for everyone”

On a personal account, including the free plan, new chats may be used to improve ChatGPT unless you turn that off. Your chats can still stay in your history either way. Turning this off does not delete them or hide them.

On a computer, while signed in:

  1. Open your account menu.
  2. Select Settings.
  3. Select Data controls.
  4. Find Improve the model for everyone, turn it off, and select Done if you see it.

In the iPhone or Android app:

  1. Open the menu of your chats. On a phone, that is often an icon with three lines.
  2. Select your profile icon to open Settings.
  3. Select Data controls.
  4. Turn off Improve the model for everyone.

When you are signed in, that choice applies to the account, not just the device you used. If you are using ChatGPT without an account, open Settings and turn the same control off. OpenAI says that choice is saved in that browser.

One extra detail. If you tap thumbs up or thumbs down on an answer, OpenAI says that whole conversation may still be used to improve ChatGPT, even when this setting is off.

Temporary chats

A temporary chat is for a conversation you do not want saved in your history. Start a new chat and look for an option named Temporary. Select it before you send the first message.

You may then see a choice between Personalized and Unpersonalized. Choose Unpersonalized if you do not want this chat to use memories or other saved preferences. You cannot switch that choice after the conversation starts.

While the chat stays temporary, OpenAI says it stays out of your history, is not used to improve ChatGPT, and does not create new memories. OpenAI may still keep a copy for up to 30 days for safety. Closing the chat does not erase that copy right away.

If you save a temporary chat, it becomes a regular chat. From then on it follows your usual history and model settings.

Deleting a chat

Delete a chat when you do not want it in your history anymore.

  1. Open your list of chats.
  2. Open the more options menu for that chat. It is often three dots.
  3. Select Delete, then confirm.

The chat leaves your list right away. OpenAI says it is then scheduled to be removed from their systems within 30 days, unless they must keep it longer for security or legal reasons. You cannot get a deleted chat back.

Deleting the chat does not always remove a separate memory ChatGPT saved from it. Memory is a different control. Open Settings, then Personalization, then Memory, if you see it. If Memory is not there, it may not be available on your account yet.

If you attached a file, deleting the chat may not remove a copy saved with your files. OpenAI calls that area Library when it is available. Delete the file there too if you want that copy gone.

What real ChatGPT will not ask you for

A real ChatGPT conversation does not ask you to type your password, a verification code, or a gift card number into the chat.

If a text, email, pop-up, or phone call claims to be ChatGPT or OpenAI and asks for those, do not send them. Close it. Go to the app or website you already trust, instead of tapping the link in the message.

Install the app only from the official listing. The developer should be OpenAI. On an iPhone, use the steps in the iPhone guide. On a computer, you can use chatgpt.com in your browser and skip an app entirely.

Creating an account is separate. The official site or app may ask you to sign up with an email or a phone number. That sign-in step is for your account. It is not a reason to paste your phone number into a conversation later.

Three messages you can copy

Use these after you have removed the private details. Change the plain facts, such as a date or an amount, so they match your paper.

Use this for a letter once the name, address, and ID numbers are gone.

I’ve removed my personal information from this letter. Please explain what it says in plain English and tell me if I need to do anything.

Use this for a bill or a covered screenshot.

I covered the name, address, and account number. Please explain this in plain English. Then list questions I could ask the company. Do not tell me what to decide.

Stay in the same chat and send this after the reply.

What should I double-check before I act on this?

For health, money, or legal questions, use the reply to understand the wording and prepare questions. Check the original letter, the company’s official page, or a qualified person before you act.

Common mistakes

  • Pasting a whole letter or bill, including the name and account number at the top.
  • Sending a screenshot that still shows a password, a code, or an account number.
  • Assuming a new chat forgets everything. A saved memory can still exist, depending on your settings.
  • Assuming a temporary chat is erased the moment you close it. OpenAI may keep a copy for up to 30 days.
  • Treating the reply as the final word on a medical, money, or legal decision.
  • Installing an app with a similar name whose developer is not OpenAI.

Common questions

Is ChatGPT safe?

It is a reasonable tool for everyday writing, lists, and explanations when you keep the six items above out of the chat. For a health, money, or legal decision, use it to understand the words and prepare questions. Then check the original source or a qualified person.

Is ChatGPT private?

Your chats are tied to your account and can stay in your history. On a personal account, new chats may also be used to improve ChatGPT unless you turn off Improve the model for everyone, under Settings and then Data controls. A temporary chat stays out of your history unless you save it. OpenAI may still keep a copy of that temporary chat for up to 30 days. A grocery list is a different kind of information from a password or a Medicare number.

Can I give ChatGPT my phone number?

Leave your phone number out of the chat. ChatGPT does not need it to explain a letter or draft a note. The official site or app may ask for a phone number or an email when you create an account. That is the sign-in step. It is separate from what you type into a conversation. If a message asks you to reply with a code or your phone number, do not send it.

Does ChatGPT remember what I say?

Inside one chat, it can use what you already typed in that conversation. A new chat starts a fresh thread. Separately, Memory can save some details for later chats when that feature is on. Review it in Settings, under Personalization, then Memory, if you see it. Turning Memory off does not delete your old chats. A temporary chat does not create new memories. To remove a saved detail, delete the memory and the chat where you said it.

Is the free version less safe?

The free plan and paid personal plans use the same kind of data controls. On a personal account, new chats may be used to improve ChatGPT unless you turn that off, and you can turn it off on the free version when you are signed in. Keep passwords and account numbers out on every plan, including a paid one.

What to do next

You now have a short list to keep out of ChatGPT, a way to ask about a letter or a bill after you cover the private lines, and the settings that control history, model improvement, temporary chats, and deleting a chat.

For the broader starting point, return to the complete beginner’s guide to ChatGPT. For phone steps, use the iPhone guide.

If you want more everyday examples, AI Made Simple has a free beginner guide with 10 useful things to try with ChatGPT.

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