Samsung Reportedly Bans Staff From Using ChatGPT and AI Tools, Following Security Concerns

Samsung has reportedly informed staff that AI tools such as ChatGPT are banned from internal use as they pose a security risk.

Staff are said to be restricted from using OpenAI’s ChatGPT on the internal company network as well as company-owned devices. Bloomberg News reports that this rule was sent to staff via an internal memo. The company looked into this restriction following an incident where an employee reportedly uploaded “sensitive code to the platform.”

Samsung’s main concern is how data that is transferred within AI platforms such as ChatGPT, Google’s Bard, etc. are stored. It’s said that data is stored via external servers, which makes it difficult to retrieve and delete. Therefore, sensitive data is also susceptible to being accessed by OpenAI for instance.

“HQ is reviewing security measures to create a secure environment for safely using generative AI to enhance employees’ productivity and efficiency,” the Samsung internal memo read, Bloomberg reports. “However, until these measures are prepared, we are temporarily restricting the use of generative AI.” As well as restricting the use of generative AI on company computers, phones, and tablets, Samsung is also asking staff not to upload sensitive business information via their personal machines.”

OpenAI does have policies in place which restrict information and data from being seen by internal members of the team. However, these are reserved for conversations made by a company on ChatGPT’s API. However, if a Samsung employee (or any employee from a major tech company) were to use the standard web portal, that data may be seen and accessed by ChatGPT.

AI is not only seeing a boom from an entertainment perspective. Companies are looking into various ways in which ChatGPT, Bard, and other AI tools can help streamline day-to-day efforts. For instance, AI can create text templates for marketing strategies. It can also summarize entire meetings into bullet points.

However, as the world enters this wild west of AI, many are calling for AI regulations and restrictions. Samsung isn’t the only company that is currently restricting the use of AI due to security concerns. Major American banks have banned the use of AI tools for similar reasons, including concerns over security.

Samsung’s restrictions are prominent, however. The report does state that Samsung is looking into constructive ways employees can lean on AI. However, it appears as though the company is much more interested in developing in-house tools. These restrictions also don’t apply to consumer electronics sold by Samsung.