Data Leak Prompts Samsung To Ban Employee Use Of ChatGPT And Other AI Platforms

Samsung Electronics has banned the use of generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, by employees, citing concerns about the security risks posed by the storage of data on external servers.

This comes following an accidental leak of internal source code in April. The code was uploaded to ChatGPT by Samsung engineers, but it is unknown what the informaton entailed.

The company has sent a memo to staff to confirm the ban, which applies to all company-owned devices and internal networks, reports Business Standard.

"Interest in generative AI platforms such as ChatGPT has been growing internally and externally. While this interest focuses on the usefulness and efficiency of these platforms, there are also growing concerns about security risks presented by generative AI" Samsung told staff.

Samsung warned its employees against submitting any company-related information or personal data that could disclose its intellectual property when using ChatGPT and similar tools on personal devices. The policy warns that breaking the new rules could result in dismissal.

A few months after OpenAI's chatbot service piqued widespread interest in the technology, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Citigroup, among other Wall Street banks, either banned or limited its use in February.

Italy also prohibited the use of ChatGPT over privacy concerns, although it reversed its stance in recent times.