Alphabet Inc. cautions employees about use of chatbots
Risks of AI and chatbots
The chatbots such as Bard and ChatGPT, are human-sounding programs that use so-called generative artificial intelligence (AI) to hold conversations with users. Researchers found that AI could reproduce the data it absorbed during training, creating a leak risk. Such technology can also draft emails, documents, and even software.
Being transparent about the limitations of its technology, Google confirmed that Bard can make undesired code suggestions.
Chatbots' impact on privacy
Earlier, Google told Reuters about its detailed conversations with Ireland's Data Protection Commission. Google is addressing regulators' questions about the chatbot's impact on privacy.
Top companies warn employees against use of chatbots
Google’s caution reflects what’s becoming a security standard for corporations. Several companies have warned their employees about using publicly-available chat programs. Companies such as Samsung, Amazon.com and Deutsche Bank have all set up guardrails against chatbots.
However, as per a survey conducted by the networking site Fishbowl, 43% of professionals were using AI tools often without telling their bosses.
Safety concerns
Some companies have developed software to address such concerns. For instance, Cloudflare, which defends websites against cyberattacks and offers other cloud services, is marketing a capability for businesses to tag and restrict some data from flowing externally.
Both Google and Microsoft are also offering conversational tools to business customers that will come with a higher price tag but refrain from absorbing data into public AI models.
Concerns about AI chatbots
Microsoft declined to comment on whether it has restricted its staff from entering confidential information into public AI programs, including its own. CEO of Cloudflare, Matthew Prince said that typing confidential matters into chatbots was like "turning a bunch of PhD students loose in all of your private records."
While companies continue to make their chatbots more safe for public use, it is clear that at present there are certain loopholes in these chatbots that needs to be taken care of.
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